Sketch for "Oath on the Rütli" (recto), Female Figure (verso)
Henry Fuseli·1779–81 (recto); 1785–90 (verso)
Historical Context
Fuseli's sketch for the Oath on the Rütli from 1779-81 relates to the legendary oath of the three Swiss cantons at the Rütliwiese meadow in 1291 that founded the Swiss Confederation — the national founding myth that Fuseli, himself Swiss-born, treated as a subject of patriotic as well as artistic significance. Fuseli was born Heinrich Füssli in Zurich and educated in the Swiss Reformed tradition before his move to England transformed him into one of British Romantic painting's most important figures. His treatment of Swiss national history reflected both personal patriotic attachment and the Romantic period's broader interest in national origin myths as vehicles for exploring collective heroism and political founding.
Technical Analysis
The oil sketch shows Fuseli's dynamic compositional thinking, with figures arranged in a dramatic, oath-taking gesture. The technique is characteristically bold with broad, energetic brushwork capturing the dramatic moment in a preliminary format. The dark, atmospheric palette and strong chiaroscuro create the sense of nocturnal drama.
Provenance
Possibly William F. E. Gurley (died 1943), Chicago [The picture was discovered, unstretched, among the holdings of the Department of Prints and Drawings in 1976. It is possible that it came to the Art Institute in 1922 or 1943 as part of the Gurley Bequest, a large collection of drawings many of which remained unaccessioned until the 1980s and 1990s]; transferred from the Department of Prints and Drawings to the Department of European Painting and accessioned as an anonymous gift, 1980
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