The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 10, 2024

Sheet of Sketches (recto)

Sheet of Sketches (recto)

1819
(French, 1791–1824)
Sheet: 22.8 x 35 cm (9 x 13 3/4 in.)
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Géricault died at a young age and had a professional career lasting only just over a decade.

Description

The inscription at the upper left of the sheet states that Géricault executed these studies at the spring of the Magdelaine, near the forest of Fontainebleau, which he visited in 1819. The male figures closely resemble the earlier studies he made while in Italy of peasants during horse races at annual Roman carnivals. Here, men struggle to keep control of their unseen animals during the moments before the race. The verso female figures, visible though the paper, derive directly from Pompeiian paintings of bacchanals, or revelers participating in festivals honoring Bacchus, the god of wine.
  • Nineteenth-Century French Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 20-April 30, 2023).
    Stories From Storage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 7-May 16, 2021).
    Drawn to the Body: The Human Figure and the Graphic Arts, 1500-1900. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 14-May 23, 1999).
  • {{cite web|title=Sheet of Sketches (recto)|url=false|author=Théodore Géricault|year=1819|access-date=10 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1964.28.a