Artwork Page for Orpheus and Eurydice (recto); Figure Studies (verso)

Details / Information for Orpheus and Eurydice (recto); Figure Studies (verso)

Orpheus and Eurydice (recto); Figure Studies (verso)

c. 1761

Jean-Honoré Fragonard

(French, 1732–1806)
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Culture
France, 18th century
Medium
Black and gray chalks on cream laid paper
Measurements
Sheet: 28.9 x 22.7 cm (11 3/8 x 8 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Joseph F. McCrindle 2009.152
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Quick drawings could serve a variety of purposes, and it is not always clear today why an artist created a particular sketch. This one may record a painting Fragonard saw during a journey to Italy, or capture an idea he was considering for a painting of his own. Orpheus, identified by the lute, grasps for his love Eurydice as she is pulled down into Hades. The snarling animals near his feet may represent Cerberus, the multiheaded guard dog of the underworld.
A vertically oriented black chalk drawing on cream paper features two side-by-side sketches. On the left, a muscular male looks back toward a reclining nude female amidst diagonal hatching. On the right, a central nude male stands with head bowed. Surrounding him are light, overlapping sketches of a large shouting face and limbs. Quick, sketchy lines and varied shading define the active, unfinished figures against the light background.

Orpheus and Eurydice (recto); Figure Studies (verso)

c. 1761

Jean-Honoré Fragonard

(French, 1732–1806)
France, 18th century

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