Art Institute of Chicago

Emma and Her Baby, Chelsea Embankment

Theodore Roussel

Date

1888–89

Medium

Etching in black on cream laid paper

Culture

England

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

For many of his earliest etchings Roussel used small copper plates and focused on Chelsea scenes, conveying a clear sense of place while often presenting affectionate portraits of the neighborhood’s youngest residents. In this example, a nursemaid with her charge stands in front of Chelsea Embankment’s characteristic railings, with Battersea factories across the Thames River. Roussel employed a shorthand drawing style, almost caricature, to portray his figures.

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