Study for Ceiling Decoration

ca. 1894

Not on view

Cox, who painted landscapes, portraits, and figure studies and worked as an art critic and teacher, was best known as a muralist. He created this preparatory study for a ceiling of an unidentified private apartment. Committed to the academic teachings of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, Cox completed this rigorous study of a single nude female figure, using a grid system to ensure that the composition was properly proportioned. This sketch does not correspond to any of Cox’s specific commissioned murals, and it is not dated.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Title: Study for Ceiling Decoration
Artist: Kenyon Cox (American, Warren, Ohio 1856–1919 New York)
Date: ca. 1894
Culture: American
Medium: Graphite on off-white laid paper for transfer
Dimensions: 14 5/8 x 20 in. (37.1 x 50.8 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of William Rothenstein, 1912
Object Number: 12.16
Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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