Composition

Figures by a railing [M.0382] is a study for Sea Beach and Figures [M.0384]. 1

Stephanie L. Strother comments:

'the sketch belongs to a group of pictures made during the late 1860s and early 1870s, when the artist continued his transition to decorative, subjectless pictures by experimenting with compositions that synthesized a range of Eastern and classical pictorial conventions. … The works from this period also generally share a common color scheme that draws heavily on pastel shades of blue, pink, green, and purple. The blue paper (now discolored) on which the Art Institute work was sketched would have lent a harmonizing note of color to the drawing.' 2

Technique

Fine lines in pen and ink are applied in sharp lines and curves to creat either angular shapes (like arms, and the fan) or curving ones (like the parasol), tried out in different positions.

See MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 382).