Elements of skateing: A fundamental Error in the Art of Skaiting by James Gillray

Elements of skateing: A fundamental Error in the Art of Skaiting 1805

drawing, print, etching, paper

drawing

aged paper

toned paper

print

etching

traditional media

caricature

paper

personal sketchbook

england

watercolour illustration

storyboard and sketchbook work

cartoon carciture

sketchbook art

cartoon theme

"Elements of Skateing: A Fundamental Error in the Art of Skaiting" (1805) is a satirical hand-colored etching by the English caricaturist James Gillray (1756-1815). This humorous print, now in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, captures a comical scene of two figures on an icy pond, one holding onto the other's coat as they both fall dramatically. Gillray was known for his political cartoons, and this print likely mocks the fads and fashions of the day, specifically the popular activity of ice skating. The work exemplifies the artist’s use of caricature and exaggeration to expose social follies.