Statue of a Female in a Toga c. 1754 - 1765

Hubert Robert created this sketch of a statue of a female in a toga in the 18th century. It's a delicate pencil drawing that revives the visual codes of classical antiquity, a period which served as an important source of artistic inspiration during this time. We can see this in the way the female figure is portrayed; she is draped in a toga, a garment worn in ancient Rome. France in the 1700s witnessed a renewed interest in classical art and architecture. Wealthy families would visit Italy and bring these ideas back with them to France. Robert himself won the prestigious Prix de Rome which allowed him to study in Italy. Drawings like this one, as well as the statues they depict, were not just aesthetic objects; they were deeply intertwined with social values and intellectual ideas about the virtues of earlier cultures. By studying Robert's drawings alongside archival material, we can begin to understand the place of classical imagery in French social and political thought.