This beautiful image of a seated female nude demonstrates Prud'hon's deep commitment to the study of the human figure. He has recorded a simple pose from a challenging point of view and modeled with utmost care the subtle forms of the ribs, knees, and thighs. Velvety shadow runs from the raised elbow to the figure's seat, and highlights soften the forms of the belly and breasts.
The point of view adopted here makes it easy to imagine a semicircle of artists around the model, with Prud'hon perhaps placed at one end. This gathering would have occurred in a private setting, since the Académie Royale did not allow female nude models at the time.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Seated Female Nude (recto); Standing Male Nude (verso)
Artist:Pierre Paul Prud'hon (French, Cluny 1758–1823 Paris)
Date:probably between 1810–20
Medium:Black and white chalk, stumped, on blue paper
Dimensions:22 x 15 in. (55.9 x 38.1 cm)
Classification:Drawings
Credit Line:Bequest of Walter C. Baker, 1971
Accession Number:1972.118.226a, b
Pierre Decourcelle (French), his sale, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, May 29-30, 1911, no. 142; Prince Murat (French), purchased at Decourcelle Sale.
Cambridge, Mass. Fogg Museum, Harvard Art Museums. "Seventy Master Drawings (A loan exhibition arranged in honor of Professor Paul J. Sachs on the occasion of his seventieth birthday)," November 27, 1948–January 6, 1949.
Philadelphia Museum of Art. "Diamond Jubilee Exhibition, Masterpieces of Drawing," November 4, 1950–February 11, 1951.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Walter C. Baker Collection of Drawings," June 2–September 4, 1960.
Paris. Cabinet des dessins, Musée du Louvre. "Dessins français du Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York de David à Picasso," October 25, 1973–January 7, 1974.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Nineteenth Century French Drawings and Prints," June 23–August 23, 1981.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "French Drawings Recently Acquired, 1975-1984," November 27, 1984–February 10, 1985.
Paris. Galeries nationales du Grand Palais. "Prud'hon ou le rêve du bonheur," September 23, 1997–January 5, 1998.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Pierre-Paul Prud'hon," March 10–June 7, 1998.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Drawings and Prints: Selection from the Permanent Collection," September 28, 2015–January 7, 2016.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Selections from the Department of Drawings and Prints: Hidden and Displayed," November 1, 2018–January 27, 2019.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Selections from the Department of Drawings and Prints: Anniversary Highlights," October 8, 2020–January 18, 2021.
Guiffrey 1924.1142
Jean Guiffrey L'Oeuvre de Pierre-Paul Prud'hon. Archives de l'art francais, n.s. vol. 13, Paris, 1924, cat. no. 1142, p. 437, ill.
Fogg Museum, Harvard Art Museums Seventy Master Drawings: A Loan Exhibition Arranged in Honor of Professor Paul J. Sachs on the Occasion of his Seventieth Birthday Exh. cat., Harvar Art Museums, Cambridge (November 27, 1948 - January 6, 1949). Cambridge, 1948, cat. no. 54.
One Hundred Master Drawings. To accompany "Seventy master drawings," a loan exhibition at the Fogg Museum of Art, Nov. 1948-Jan. 1949, held on the occasion of the 70th birthday of Paul J. Sachs, and 30 additional drawings from the museum's collections
Exh. cat., Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge. edited by Agnes Mongan, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1949, p. 126, ill.
Masterpieces of Drawing: Diamond Jubilee Exhibition Philadelphia Museum of Art, November 4, 1950–February 11, 1951. Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, 1950, cat. no. 75, ill.
Claus Virch "The Walter C. Baker Collection of Master Drawings." in The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, vol. 18, no. 10, New York, June 1960, fig. no. 7, pp. 315, 316, ill.
Claus Virch Master Drawings in the Collection of Walter C. Baker. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1962, cat. no. 90, p. 52, ill.
Jacob Bean Great Private Collections. Douglas Cooper, Macmillan & Co., New York, 1963, p. 36, ill.
Jacob Bean, Linda Boyer Gillies, Cynthia Lambros, Roseline Bacou, Réunion des Musées Nationaux Dessins français du Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: de David à Picasso 54th Exposition de Cabinet des Dessins Musée du Louvre, 25 octobre 1973–7 janvier 1974. Paris, 1973, cat. no. 78, fig. no. 5, p. 60, ill.
Robert Beverly Hale, Terence Coyle Anatomy Lessons from the Great Masters. New York, 1977, p. 70, ill.
Jacob Bean Notable Acquisitions, 1979-1980: Drawings (Walter C. Baker Collection, and other sources). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1980, p. 49.
Works of Art from the Collection of Mr. & Mrs. John Jay Ide. Exh. cat. Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, San Francisco, 1989, fig. no. 35, pp. 72, 42.
John Elderfield, Robert Gordon The Language of the Body: Drawings by Pierre-Paul Prud'hon. New York, 1996, fig. no. 11, 36, pp. 114, 164, ill.
Sylvain Laveissière Pierre-Paul Prud'hon. Exh. cat. New York, 1998, cat. no. 187, fig. no. 187, 187a, pp. 262-263.
Louis-Antoine Prat Le Dessin français au XIXe siècle. Somogy Editions d'Art, Paris, 2011, fig. no. 234, 112, ill.
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