Boy Reading c. 1850s

"Boy Reading" is a pen and ink sketch by American artist William Sidney Mount, dating back to the 1850s. The sketch depicts a young boy, wearing a hat, sitting in profile, engrossed in a book. The quick strokes and the artist's notes at the bottom ("Figures must be my study") reveal this to be a study for a larger work, suggesting Mount's dedication to capturing the human figure accurately. The sketch's small size (13.49 x 10.95 cm) and informal style make it an intimate glimpse into the artistic process of a noted 19th-century American painter.