Minneapolis Institute of Art

Recumbent Nude Woman (Femme nue allongée)

François Rupert Carabin

Date

not dated

Medium

Charcoal

Department

European Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Rupert Carabin was a master carver who put his talents to use making elaborate Art Nouveau furniture, usually featuring elements carved as female nudes. To build up a repertoire of poses, Carabin made photographic studies of prostitutes. Lots of them. And often in seductive poses. Some 700 are preserved at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris. From these photographs, Carabin executed innumerable drawings he used in creating his functional sculptural pieces. Most have minimal shading to accentuate the forms. The figures are usually shown in isolation with little in the way of accessories or context. The present drawing has just enough shading to indicate that the woman is illuminated from our right and shows scant indication of drapery. Nonetheless, with great economy of line, Carabin has managed to impart a strong sense of presence—the fleshiness of her body, her position in space, and her seemingly animated personality. France, Europe

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