Getty Museum
Classical Nudes (recto); Classical Statuary (verso)
Creator
Théodore GéricaultFrench Artist · 1791–1824
All works by this person →> Obstacles and difficulties which repel mediocre men are a necessity and nourishment to genius. They mature and elevate it, when in an easier road it would have remained cold. > > --Théodore Géricault Géricault's fiery, daring personality and short life fit the mold of Romantic artists of his era and, along with his controversial paintings, profoundly influenced nineteenth-century art. Despite ab
More on Getty ULAN- Date
- about 1814–1815
- Medium
- Graphite, pen and brown ink, and brown wash
- Culture
- French
- Department
- Drawings
- Institution
- Getty Museum
Théodore Géricault relied only on broad outlines and richly applied washes to produce the muscular bodies of these two nudes. He reused a sheet covered with pencil drawings, creating new, more powerful forms that contrast linearity with volume. He may have sketched them at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he copied antique statues for practice. The figures on the verso are less inventive and more orderly, arranged in two neat rows. Using pen and ink to cover older pencil drawings of studies of heads, Géricault again copied antique statues, including several in classical armor as well as the figures of Cupid and Psyche. Most of these figures are simple outlines, while others have a delicately applied wash.
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