Art Institute of Chicago

Figure Studies (recto and verso)

Henry Fuseli

Date: c. 1800
Medium: Pen and brown ink (recto and verso) on cream laid paper
Culture: England
Department: Prints and Drawings
Institution: Art Institute of Chicago

In this double-sided study, Fuseli cleverly traced the same figure on opposite sides of the sheet, as if thinking in three dimensions. His nudes are mostly inspired by ancient sources, as in the hanging satyr with his arms raised (based on a famous Hellenistic sculpture of the flayed Marsyas), but Fuseli activates them with his dynamic line. Drawing the human figure dominated artistic training in Fuseli’s day. While sketching from a live model was part of conventional practice, copying ancient Roman sculpture was equally important. Fuseli’s exposure to an abundance of ancient sculpture during his years in Rome (1770–78) became a visual catalogue he drew upon throughout his life.

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