Study for “The Enrollment of the Volunteers of 1792”

1848

Not on view

Following the success of Couture's "Romans of the Decadence," the Second Republic government commissioned "The Enrollment of the Volunteers of 1792" for the Hall of Sessions of the National Assembly, aiming to associate the recent revolution of 1848 with the foundational revolutionary moment of over fifty years prior. The project was never completed though the unfinished canvas survives (Musée Départemental de l'Oise) along with many studies such as this. Although a figure who strikes this exact pose has not been identified in the composition as it exists today, the inscription in the artist's hand definitively connects it to the project. This carefully observed drawing of an upraised arm with its creased sleeve demonstrates an aspect of the artist's process in preparing a monumental painting: the study from life of models in various attitudes.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

References

Title: Study for “The Enrollment of the Volunteers of 1792”
Artist: Thomas Couture (French, Senlis 1815–1879 Villiers-le-Bel)
Date: 1848
Medium: Fabricated black chalk
Dimensions: Sheet: 16 3/4 in. × 12 in. (42.5 × 30.5 cm)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Gift of Roberta J.M. Olson and Alexander B.V. Johnson, 2018
Object Number: 2018.904.3
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By Thomas Couture

In the same medium

From the same time and place

Study for "The Enrollment of the Volunteers of 1792", Thomas Couture French, Black chalk on gray paper — Study for "The Enrollment of the Volunteers of 1792"
Thomas Couture
ca. 1848–51

Ceramic Horn, Glazed pottery, French — Ceramic Horn
French
late 18th or early 19th century

Three Standing Figures (recto); Seated Woman and a Male Hermit in Half-length (verso), Stefano da Verona (Stefano di Giovanni d'Arbosio di Francia) Italian, Pen and brown ink, over traces of charcoal or black chalk (recto); pen and brown ink, brush with touches of brown wash, over traces of charcoal or black chalk (verso) — Three Standing Figures (recto); Seated Woman and a Male Hermit in Half-length (verso)
Stefano da Verona (Stefano di Giovanni d'Arbosio di Francia)
1435–38

Lawyer on His Way to Court (Se Rendant à l'Audience), Thomas Couture French, Black chalk — Lawyer on His Way to Court (Se Rendant à l'Audience)
Thomas Couture
ca. 1860

Moulin Rouge: La Goulue, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec French, Lithograph printed in four colors; three sheets of wove paper — Moulin Rouge: La Goulue
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Printer Affiches Américaines, Charles Lévy
1891

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

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 contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.