Sheet of Sketches 1828

Auguste Raffet created this Sheet of Sketches with lithography on paper, now held at the Art Institute of Chicago. The layout presents an array of studies, each a microcosm of form and narrative. Raffet's lithographic technique is striking, marked by dense cross-hatching that gives a rich tonality to the figures and scenes. Notice how the composition isn't unified by a single vanishing point. Rather, each sketch operates independently, fragmenting the viewer's gaze across the page. This decentralization of focus challenges traditional notions of pictorial unity. There is a tension between ethnographic observation and romanticized exoticism which reflects broader artistic and philosophical concerns of his time. In particular, how the emerging fields of anthropology and ethnography engaged with visual representation. Each sketch functions as a signifier, pointing to cultural codes and historical contexts. Yet, Raffet’s approach destabilizes fixed meanings. The work invites ongoing interpretations of its imagery.