.Louis Choris (1795-1828). Pencil sketches on paper, 1815-1818. Image sizes: 8 x 17 inches and 4 x 17 inches, 24 x 29 4/8 inches framed. A fine pair of pencil sketches, in two stages, one of Manila in the Philippines and the other of the Dutch Harbor of Unalaska in the Aleutian Islands Louis (or Ludovik) Choris’s most celebrated publications were the Voyage Pittoresque Autour du Monde and the Vues et Paysages des Regions Equinoxiales. In both of these magnificent works, Choris provided important pictorial representations of the people, landscape, and artifacts of the still-mysterious islands of the Pacific, California, Alaska, the northwest coast of America, and other far-off lands. The magnificence of Choris’s published lithographs, however, pales in comparison to the nuanced touch and exquisite execution of the artist’s original watercolors and sketches, which are extremely rare, many of them lost. The present selection represents an unparalleled glimpse into the balance of documentary and esthetic impulses that characterizes this master artist’s work. Highly atmospheric and flawlessly rendered, these original works show myriad aspects of Choris’s creative process as he proceeded from quick studies to finished compositions, and represent highly significant pictorial documents relating to the European explorations.