Study of a Female Figure

Drawing details

Title: Study of a Female Figure
Date: c.1872-73
Media: Silverpoint on paper
Dimensions: 12.3 x 7.2 cm
Location: Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University
Picture credit: Courtesy of the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University Art Museums, Friends of the Fogg Art Museum Fund
Reference number: 1946.35.38

Interpretation

Stephen Jones, a former curator at Leighton House Museum, suggested this drawing may be a study for the female figure in the painting 'Nausicaa' (c.1878, private collection). Alternatively, it may be an early idea for the painting 'Memories' (c.1883, private collection), or an informal portrait of a friend or acquaintance.

Description

Page from a sketchbook. Full-length study of a seated female figure, facing the to left. The elbow of the right arm rests on a chair. The right hand supports the head and she leans towards it. The left arm rests across the lap. The figure wears a long, contemporary style dress and a headdress. The armchair she is seated in is also roughly sketched in. 

Provenance

Purchased by the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, from Geoffrey Steele (antiquarian bookseller, c.1907-2000) from his bookshop at RFD 1, Mahopac, New York, in 1946 for $6.00.