George Frederic Watts RA, Study of a wing, possibly for 'The Wounded Heron', ca. 1837.
Pencil on cream wove paper. 238 mm x 292 mm. © Photo: Royal Academy of Arts, London.
This image is not available to download. To licence this image for commercial purposes, contact our Picture Library at picturelibrary@royalacademy.org.uk
George Frederic Watts RA, Study of a wing, possibly for 'The Wounded Heron', ca. 1837.
Pencil on cream wove paper. 238 mm x 292 mm. © Photo: Royal Academy of Arts, London. Photographer: John Hammond.
This image is not available to download. To licence this image for commercial purposes, contact our Picture Library at picturelibrary@royalacademy.org.uk
Study of a wing, possibly for 'The Wounded Heron', ca. 1837
George Frederic Watts RA (1817 - 1904)
RA Collection: Art
A closely-observed pencil study of a bird's wing. This is probably a preparatory drawing for Watts's first painting to be exhibited at the Royal Academy, 'The Wounded Heron' (1837, Watts Gallery). Watts said that he had been impressed by the sight of a dead heron hanging in a poulterer's shop and had bought the bird to paint in his studio.
Watts later painted 'A Dedication: To all those who love the beautiful and mourn over the senseless and cruel destruction of bird life and beauty' (1898-99), depicting an angel weeping over slaughtered birds, in protest against the killing of birds to supply feathers for the fashion industry.
Object details
238 mm x 292 mm
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