Vincent’s pen-and-ink lines vibrate with an elegant muscularity in this compositional study for his 1787 painting The Clemency of Augustus. Like his contemporary Jacques Louis David, Vincent worked out the compositions of his history paintings by first drawing the figures nude. The declamatory poses of the figures reflect their dramatic pedigree, as the artist here depicts the concluding scene of Pierre Corneille’s 1641 play, Cinna.
Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
Open Access
As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.
API
Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
Artwork Details
Use your arrow keys to navigate the tabs below, and your tab key to choose an item
Title:The Clemency of Augustus (recto); Knight Restraining a Female Figure (verso)
Artist:François André Vincent (French, Paris 1746–1816 Paris)
Date:ca. 1787–88
Medium:Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over traces of red chalk; perspective lines in graphite (recto). Red chalk; squared in red chalk (verso).
Dimensions:13 1/4 x 15 1/16 in. (33.7 x 38.3 cm)
Classification:Drawings
Credit Line:Harry G. Sperling Fund, 1985
Accession Number:1985.245.2
Signature: At lower right in pen and black ink: "Vincent 1788"
Vendor: P. & D. Colnaghi & Co.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Drawings and Prints: Selections from the Permanent Collection," February 6–April 16, 1995.
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Tours. "François-André Vincent," October 18, 2013–January 19, 2014.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "In the Orbit of Jacques Louis David: Selections from the Department of Drawings and Prints," January 20–May 31, 2022.
Bean and Turcic 1986.319; Cuzin 1988.46
Old Master Drawings. Exh. cat., June 25 - July 13. P. & D. Colnaghi & Co., 1985, cat. no. 46, ill.
Jacob Bean, Lawrence Turčić 15th-18th Century French Drawings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1986, cat. no. 319, pp. 282-284, ill.
Philip Conisbee "New York French Drawings [exhibition review]." The Burlington Magazine. vol. 128, London, December 1986, p. 925.
Jacob Bean "Curatorial Reports and Departmental Accessions: Drawings." in Annual Report of the Trustees of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 1, 1985 - June 30, 1986. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 116, New York, 1986, p. 23, ill.
Jennifer Montagu "Quand un musée s'expose: des dessins français du 15e au 18e siècle, Metropolitan Museum, New York." in Connaissance des Arts. no. 416, Paris, October 1986, p. 91, ill.
Jean-Pierre Cuzin "François-André Vincent, 1746-1816." Cahiers du Dessin Français. vol. 4, Paris, 1988, cat. no. 46, p. 21, ill.
Richard J. Campbell, Victor I. Carlson Visions of Antiquity: Neoclassical Figure Drawings. Exh. cat., Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Minneapolis. 1993, cat. no. 37, fig. no. 37, pp. 185-186, ill.
Jean-Pierre Cuzin François-André Vincent, 1746-1816: Entre Fragonard et David. Paris, 2013, cat. no. 466D, 150-151, 153, 458, ill.
Tradition & Transitions Eighteenth-Century French Art from The Horvitz Collection. Alvin L. Clark Jr., 2017, 460.
Louis-Antoine Prat Le Dessin Français au XVIIIe siècle. Paris, 2017, fig. no. 1258, 608-09, ill.
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
The Met's collection of drawings and prints—one of the most comprehensive and distinguished of its kind in the world—began with a gift of 670 works from Cornelius Vanderbilt, a Museum trustee, in 1880.
