Seated Nude Woman Touching her Foot 1600 - 1615

Barthélemy Prieur, a sculptor working in France between 1536 and 1611, made this bronze statuette representing a seated nude woman. This small sculpture recalls classical ideals of beauty, a reference to the antique that was very fashionable in Europe at this time. We can consider this sculpture as part of a cultural movement known as the Renaissance, which looked back to ancient Greece and Rome for inspiration. The Catholic Church had long been a patron of the arts, but wealthy families were also now commissioning artwork. Royal patronage was central to Prieur's career, and he became the official sculptor to King Henry IV in 1602. The statue encourages reflection on the politics of imagery in 16th-century Europe, especially around the status of women. To understand the sculpture better, we might research Prieur’s patrons, study Renaissance ideals of beauty, and investigate the social status of women in sixteenth-century France. The meaning of this artwork is thus contingent on its social and institutional context.