Bacchus
Artist
Charles-Joseph Natoire
(French, 1700-1777)
Date18th–late 18th Century
CultureFrench
MediumRed chalk with traces of white chalk
ClassificationDrawings
Credit LineMuseum purchase, 1982
Object numberSN983
The figure in this Academy drawing is modeled with delicate, rhythmic lines that seamlessly transform into softly hatched passages, which suggests well the suppleness of the model's flesh. Vigorous shading in the negative space between the model's knees further indicates the strength of the figure's generous contours. The drawing seems to lose credibility, however, with the articulation of the model's right thigh, which is extraordinarily large and rather exaggerated in its musculature.
This is typical of the way the nude model was posed in the Academies. Though most Academy drawings did not generally represent an identifiable subject, the model of this sheet was given props, making it easy to imagine him as Bacchus, the Roman god of wine.
On View
Not on view
Ludovico Mazzolino
circa 1524
