Study for the Queen of Sheba Ceiling Mural at Hôtel Carnavalet (now Musée Carnavalet) c. 1920

This black and white photograph, created by José María Sert, is a study for a mural. The subject of the study is a nude woman sitting in a chair. The composition is simple, with the woman taking up most of the space in the frame. The image appears to have been taken in a studio and is laid out on a grid which suggests that it was used as a preparatory work. This intimate study was intended for Sert’s ceiling mural for the Hôtel Carnavalet, now Musée Carnavalet, and is a wonderful example of his use of the female form in his work.