Study Of A Young Man c. 1760

Jean-Baptiste Greuze rendered this study of a young man with oils, capturing a figure gazing upwards, seemingly enraptured by some divine inspiration. This upward gaze is no mere glance; it is a motif deeply embedded in our collective consciousness. Consider the countless depictions of saints and mystics throughout art history, their eyes lifted towards the heavens in moments of revelation. Think of Bernini’s Saint Teresa, consumed by divine ecstasy. Or, rewind further to antiquity. The raised eyes and tilted head reappear—a posture that suggests a reaching beyond the material world. This symbolic gesture evokes a sense of longing and transcendence that touches something primal within us. It speaks to our innate desire to seek meaning beyond our immediate existence, a yearning perhaps rooted in our earliest experiences of dependence and wonder. Indeed, the symbol of the upward gaze is not linear but cyclical, continuously resurfacing, evolving, and taking on new meanings in different historical contexts, forever resonating with our deepest psychological and emotional currents.