The Elements of Drawing, John Ruskin’s teaching collection at Oxford

The Elements of Drawing, John Ruskin’s teaching collection at Oxford

Ruskin's Rudimentary series, 5th ed. (1873)

Items marked 'M' are drawings "by my own Hand" (by Ruskin), P are photographs, E engravings and A by Ruskin's Assistant, Arthur Burgess.

Rudimentary 5 Cover

Ruskin's Catalogues: 1 object

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Ruskin assembled a diverse collection of artworks for his drawing school in Oxford, including watercolours by J.M.W. Turner and drawings by Ruskin himself.  He taught students to draw as a way of educating them in how to look at art and the world around them.  

Ruskin divided his Teaching Collection into four main series: Standard, Reference, Educational and Rudimentary. Each item was placed in a numbered frame, arranged in a set of cabinets, so that they all had a specific position in the Collection (although Ruskin often moved items about as his ideas changed). 

When incorporated into the Ashmolean’s collection in the last century, the works were removed from the frames and the sequence was lost.  Here, Ruskin's original catalogues, notes and instructions - in his chosen order and in his own words - are united with images of the works and links to modern curatorial descriptions.

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Crowhurst (from the Unpublished Plates of the Liber Studiorum) Turner

Location

    • Western Art Print Room

Position in Ruskin’s Collection

Ruskin's Catalogues

  • Ruskin's Rudimentary series, 3rd ed. (1872)

    R|154} Winter Sunset. Unpublished plate, engraved by Turner with his own hand.
  • Ruskin's Rudimentary series 4th ed. (1872)

    R|154} Winter Sunset. Unpublished plate, engraved by Turner with his own hand.
  • Ruskin's Rudimentary series, 5th ed. (1873)

    R|154} Winter Sunset. Unpublished plate, engraved by Turner with his own hand.
  • Ruskin's revision to the Rudimentary series (1878)

    154. (154) 160. Crowhurst

    This unpublished Plate, seen here in its finest state, is the most elaborate piece of work which Turner gave to wood scenery in the Liber. He seems R.Crowhurst to have meant to make it extremely beautiful and the record of a most solemn impression on his own mind from the Downs of Sussex, under light-falling snow with heavier storm coming on in twilight. The brown colour, however, of the engraving defeats his purpose: but the study is full of passages with which all students of English Landscape are so familiar that I take it for the most perfect introduction to all the following variety of English Scenes in the Book itself. It must represent all of them here, for we have only Fifteen more subjects to divide between Scotland and Switzerland, having already given ten to England.

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