ticketsMember | Make a donation

Seated Male Nude

n.d.
Not on view
This sheet is of a kind sometimes called an academy, that is, a carefully executed drawing of a nude in a studio pose. Although academies were standard exercises for young artists, they were also produced by established draftsmen like Lagrenée, who was a professor at the Académie Royale at the time this drawing was made.
As was typical, the model assumes a posture inspired by other works of art. The brooding expression and arrangement of the legs recall figures by Michelangelo, making Lagrenée's drawing both a study of the pose from life and an homage to the earlier master. The sharp contour and compact musculature give the figure a sculptural quality which is further enhanced by the hatching used to describe the volumes of the body and the shadows cast by the left arm and right leg.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Seated Male Nude
  • Artist: Louis Lagrenée (French, Paris 1725–1805 Paris)
  • Date: n.d.
  • Medium: Red chalk
  • Dimensions: 15 5/8 x 19 15/16 in. (39.7 x 50.6 cm)
  • Classification: Drawings
  • Credit Line: Harry G. Sperling Fund, 1985
  • Object Number: 1985.112.1
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Drapery Study of a Woman with an Outstretched Arm, Louis Lagrenée French, Black and white chalk with stumping on buff-colored paper
Drapery Study of a Woman with an Outstretched Arm
Louis Lagrenée
ca. 1770–80
Les Grâces lutinées par les amours, Louis Lagrenée French, Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over traces of black chalk
Les Grâces lutinées par les amours
Louis Lagrenée
1778
The Resurrection, Louis Lagrenée French, Pen and black ink, gray wash, and watercolor, over traces of graphite
The Resurrection
Louis Lagrenée
ca. 1760
Portrait of Charlotte Duchesne, Philippe de Champaigne French, Black chalk, heightened with white, with touches of red chalk
Portrait of Charlotte Duchesne
Philippe de Champaigne
ca. 1628
Presentation Drawing of "The Statue of Liberty Illuminating the World", Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi French, Charcoal, heightened with white chalk
Presentation Drawing of "The Statue of Liberty Illuminating the World"
Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi
1875

Related Content

Timeline of Art History

Entries from The Met's art encyclopedia.

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

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 complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.