Science Instructing Industry: Nude Study 1898

This charcoal drawing, "Science Instructing Industry: Nude Study", is a preliminary study for a larger mural by Kenyon Cox. The drawing, completed in 1898, shows the nude figure of a man standing, possibly representing Industry, while a draped female figure in the background, perhaps Science, gestures toward him. Cox's mural was intended to be a figurative allegory of the relationship between science and industry. The preliminary sketch is drawn on a gridded sheet and provides a sense of the artist's approach to composition and proportion. The study is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.