Studie van zittend mannelijk naakt, van opzij gezien 1703 - 1775

Curator: The tension in this sketch is incredible, isn't it? There’s a quiet power in the figure's pose. Editor: Indeed. It has the unmistakable air of academic study. It looks like it was made in preparation for a larger history painting. I imagine this paper absorbing the artist’s countless subtle reworkings. The toned paper alone suggests that. Curator: Right, the ochre ground breathes life into the ochre strokes of charcoal, chalk, and pastel. Here we have "Studie van zittend mannelijk naakt, van opzij gezien," or "Study of a Seated Male Nude, Seen from the Side," attributed to Louis Fabritius Dubourg, dating from sometime between 1703 and 1775. Editor: You can feel the artist grappling with the complexities of human anatomy. The materials are so raw. It reveals an early stage in the creative process—a testing ground, if you will, to figure out light and shadow, musculature, etcetera. Curator: Observe the contrapposto, so essential in Baroque figure studies! This stance conveys the weight and dignity that connects to the archetype of a learned man. There is knowledge, contemplation, perhaps a god? It echoes a lineage stretching back to classical sculpture, these men that can bring a society back from barbarism. Editor: And to me, it’s equally about the paper's inherent limitations; a flat surface challenged to convey the illusion of three dimensions. This drawing becomes more compelling when we view it as a record of the maker’s direct, physical labor and an instance within the academy training, no matter how romantic and idealistic it is, the material tells a concrete story. Curator: Perhaps that interplay of limitations and reaching beyond gives the drawing its lingering symbolic pull for viewers today. Thank you for helping illuminate that balance. Editor: Absolutely. Each medium employed tells us something new.