Skating on the Serpentine, Hyde Park, London

The present drawing is related to the right-hand portion of a painting by Philippe Jacques de Loutherbourg, R.A. (1740-1812), entitled A Winter Morning, with a Party Skating, exhibited in 1776 and engraved in 1784 (Maidstone Museum & Bentlif Art Gallery, inv. Bentlif 37). Julius Caesar Ibbetson (1759-1817) also executed drawings of this subject, including Skaters on the Serpentine in Hyde Park in 1786 (The National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., inv. 1987.82.1) and Skating on the Serpentine in 1796 (Eton College Collection). However the theme derives ultimately from Hendrik Avercamp (1585-1634), for example A Scene on the Ice near a Town, The National Gallery, London (inv. NG1479).

The subject of a skating party provided Rowlandson with a perfect opportunity to depict the comic moments he revelled in. Rowlandson executed a large drawing of Skaters on the Serpentine (National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, inv. NMW A 1737), which he exhibited along with Vauxhall Gardens (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, inv. P.13-1967) at the Royal Academy in 1784 and drew a number of other versions.