SIR THOMAS LAWRENCE'S SKETCHES.
The printsellers are just now exhibiting engravings of the published Sketches of the departed, President. These were, untillately, all executed by LEWIS, whose beautiful copies of them' are familiar to all lovers of art. Among them we notice particularly, tbatlovely triad of Englishwomen, the Duke of WELLINGTON'S nieces ; the Duchess or DEVONSHIRE; CALMADT'S children ; Mrs. SIDDONS; and Sir THOMAS'S niece, Miss 111.0xast, whose swan-like neck and finely-formed features, expressive of= inquiring intelligence, are delineated with a grace and elegance of contour worthy the sweet original. Mr. LANE'S successful imitations of Sketches of Modern Artists, in lithography, induced Sir THOMAS to avail himself of his unrivalled talents as a lithographic draughtsman; and the result of the first effort of Mr. LANE'S pencil to give effect to the beautiful sketches of heads, for which the late President was as eminently celebrated as for his pictures, proved equally gratifying to the artists and the public. We allude to the drawing of Miss FANNTIcEMBLE, which we have before noticed, as in part the work of Sir THOMAS. Before his death, however, Mr. LANE had been favoured with his remarks upon the printed impression ; and he immediately proceeded to make a new drawing of the same subject, now just published, which should embody all the improvements suggested by the artist. Mr. LANE is, we understand, actively engaged upon a series of Sketches by the late President; and to augment the number and variety of those already in his possession, several noble possessors of Sir THOMAS'S original Drawings have thrown open their' portfolios to him. That lithography is particularly well calculated to give the softness of effect and delicacy of pencilling which characterize these Sketches, has been sufficiently proved by the example above spoken of, as well as by Sir THOMAS'S approval, and the evidence afforded in the instances of the female reading, by Mr. LANE, and the Portraits of two lovely Englishwomen, Mrs. DODrIN and Mrs. CUMBERRATCII, most_faithfiilly and beautifully lithographed by Mr. W. SHARP.
Previous page
