Rake’s Progress act drop design

By Rex Whistler

Pencil, sepia ink and wash, heightened with white on paper

Rex Whistler did the original set and costume designs for the Rake's Progress ballet at Sadler's Wells in 1935. Rex helped to create new designs for the ballet in 1942 after the original scenery and costumes were lost in wartime Holland. The ballet was touring the country in 1940 and was nearly caught by the German invasion.

Rex Whistler Archive