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Tracing of a Border Design

Charles Sprague Pearce

1894

graphite

paper

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Impressionism Realism Late 19th Century

Dominant colour

Tracing of a Border Design is a 1894 graphite by Charles Sprague Pearce, a Impressionism work, held at National Gallery of Art.

Who painted this?: Charles Sprague Pearce
When & what style?: 1894 · Impressionism
Where can I see it?: National Gallery of Art

About this work

This sketch shows a simple border design with repeating shapes. Two rows of swirls and loops run along the top and bottom edges. In the middle, there are two large, rounded shapes that look like leaves or stylized flowers. The lines are drawn in pencil, with some red pencil marks at the top. The paper is yellow and looks worn, with measurements written in the corners. This isn’t a finished painting—it’s a working drawing, likely made to plan out a pattern. If you like this kind of precise drawing, look up cross-hatching.