Nude Before a Mirror, 1955
Balthus (Balthasar Klossowski) (French, 19082001)
Oil on canvas; 75 x 64.5 in. (190.5 x 163.8 cm)
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975 (1975.1.155)
Balthus (Balthasar Klossowski) (French, 19082001)
Oil on canvas; 75 x 64.5 in. (190.5 x 163.8 cm)
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975 (1975.1.155)
Balthus painted landscapes, portraits, and interiors, but the female sitter in various statesdaydreaming, reclining, or sleeping, often nude or partly clothed, and typically charged with erotic contentis the subject most frequently in his oeuvre. Nude Before a Mirror is striking for the sculptural monumentality of the model, who seems to be carved from marble, and the soft silvery light that bathes the figure and fills the room.














