The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Study of a Male Nude (verso)

Study of a Male Nude (verso)

c. 1810
(French, 1758–1823)
France, 19th century
black and white chalk (both stumped)
Sheet: 61.9 x 43.6 cm (24 3/8 x 17 3/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1961.318.b
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Pierre-Paul Prud'hon was raised in the Cluny abbey by monks, who recognized and encouraged his artistic talent as a boy.

Description

This sheet is notable in its presentation of a woman, specifically one of Pierre-Paul Prud’hon’s favorite models, Marguerite—known for her curly hair and striking appearance. Following the artist’s death, more than 100 drawings were discovered in his studio, each portraying a closely studied nude figure like those shown here. The context of these works remains unclear: artists typically sketched from a model early in their training, but Prud’hon did so as a well-established painter. He saw drawing as a solitary practice, working consistently with white and black chalks on a paper described by one critic as “moonlit blue.”
  • Charles-Boulanger de Boisfremont, Paris (Lugt 353, lower left, in red ink); [his sale, Paris, Hotel Drouot, 9 April 1870, lot 49] (according to letter of 16 Feb. 1981 from Sylvain Laveissière in departmental file). Walter S.M. Burns, London; [his sale, London, Sotheby's, 6 May 1926, p. 21, lot 134] (photocopy of cat. in departmental file)
  • Nineteenth-Century French Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 20-April 30, 2023).
    Conserving the Past for the Future. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 4-May 6, 2001).
    CMA, French Drawings from the Collection (Dec. 13, 1994-Mar. 12, 1995).
    CMA, Rococo, Revolution, Restoration (July 11-Sep. 24, 1989)--[(?): did this finally appear in show?: the exh. files have two lists for the show, only one of which includes this drawing].
    CMA (listed in file of "West Wing Label Copy, ordered June 20, 1986").
    CMA, National Schools of Style (June 14-Sep. 18, 1983).
    CMA, The Lessons of the Academy (Feb. 8-May 29, 1983) ["Study of a Male Nude" listed on sheet, so only verso shown?--the same question about verso only; recto only; verso/recto both exhibited may apply as well to some of these other exh. entries (if it is an important question???)].
    CMA, French Prints and Drawings in the Age of the Bourbons, 1589-1792 (Jan. 25-May 16, 1982) ["Study of a Nude Woman, Seated Looking to the Right" listed on sheet, so only recto shown?].
    CMA, Idea to Image: Preparatory Studies from the Renaissance to Impressionism (Feb. 19-Mar. 23, 1980), pp. 19-21, illus. recto and verso.
    CMA, 17th and 18th Century Genre and French Drawings (May 31-Aug. 19, 1979).
    Toronto, Art Gallery of Ontario; Ottawa, National Gallery of Canada; San Francisco, California Palace of the Legion of Honor, French Master Drawings of the 17th and 18th Centuries in North American Collections (Sep. 2-Oct. 15; Nov. 3-Dec. 17, 1972; Jan. 12-Mar. 11, 1973), no. 118, pl. 138.
    French Master Drawings of the 17th and 18th Centuries in North American Collections. Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Legion of Honor, San Francisco, CA (September 2-October 15, 1972); Art Gallery of Ontario, Ontario M5T 1G4, Canada (organizer) (September 2-October 15, 1972); National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ont.,, Canada (November 3-December 17, 1972); The New York Cultural Center, New York, NY (April 4-May 13, 1973).
    for recto:
    CMA, "Gallery List of Drawings" (opened June 11, 1968) ["Study of a Nude Woman, Seated Looking to the Right" listed on sheet].
    CMA, "Gallery List of Drawings" (1966) ["Study of a Nude Woman, Seated Looking to the Right" listed on sheet].
    CMA, French Drawings (Nov. 10, 1965-Feb. 16, 1966; re-opened Mar. 31, 1966) ["Study of a Nude Woman, Seated Looking to the Right" listed on sheet].
    CMA, France, Italy, Netherlands (Jan. 14-Mar. 24, 1965) ["Study of a Nude Woman Seated Looking to the Right" listed on sheet].
    CMA, Neo-Classicism: Style and Motif (1964), no. 110, illus.
    CMA, The Year in Review for 1962 (Oct. 24-Nov. 25, 1962), cma Bulletin 49 (1962), p. 226 no. 129, illus. recto p. 220.
  • {{cite web|title=Study of a Male Nude (verso)|url=false|author=Pierre-Paul Prud'hon|year=c. 1810|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1961.318.b