Study of an Elephant
1886
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1886
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
This sketch shows just an elephant’s side view—its big, wrinkled body and long legs. The artist used quick, sketchy lines to show the shape, with darker tones for shadows and lighter strokes for highlights. The background is a plain blue-gray, keeping focus on the elephant’s form. The loose, rough style suggests the artist was more interested in capturing movement than detail. This fits with how artists sometimes worked fast to get shapes right. Next, check out John Macallan Swan to see more of his animal sketches.
