This drawing was likely executed in a private session with a model or perhaps in one of the city’s many open studios, as life classes at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where Seurat studied between 1876 and 1879, were dedicated only to the male body. The figure, whose raised knee and hand suggest she is leaning on a chair, emerges from the network of vigorous crayon marks that have been built up to form a dramatic contrast between light and dark. To achieve the richness of the black in the darkest areas, Seurat selected a coarsely textured white paper, now faded to a pale cream, that would catch the oily Conté crayon as it was dragged across the surface. Seurat avoided harsh outlines, allowing the paper to show through the extensively worked background to create the soft and sensual volume of the figure. Subtle gradations of tone have been further enhanced through his use of stumping, a technique whereby a roll of paper or leather is rubbed on the surface to blend certain areas. The dramatic depiction of a full-length model against a dark background, a type of drawing Seurat would have encountered in his academic training, is also found in studies by other young artists of the period. At this early stage of his career, Seurat may have found the anatomy of the figure challenging, as he has used the dark background to circumvent the need to tackle the more demanding hands and feet, which are left incomplete. It is the extraordinary atmosphere of this drawing, however, that makes this work so distinctive, with the stillness of the figure captured through the dense layers of sinuous lines that almost vibrate with energy.

Georges Bernheim (Paris); purchased there by Percy Moore Turner of the Independent Gallery (London), 27 July 1928 (£520); purchased there by Samuel Courtauld, London (1876-1947), July 1928 (£750); Courtauld Bequest 1948

The Courtauld Collection. A Vision for Impressionism, Louis Vuitton Foundation, Paris, 20/02/2019-17/06/2019

Mantegna to Matisse - Master Drawings from The Courtauld Gallery, The Frick Collection, New York, 02/10/2012-27/01/2013

Mantegna to Matisse - Master Drawings from The Courtauld Gallery, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 14/06/2012-09/09/2012 ...More

Salmon, Dimitri, Percy Moore Turner, Précieux Conseiller de Samuel and Elizabeth Courtauld, Fondation Louis Vuitton 2019
pp. 33n151, 34n157, 36n165, no. 42 on p. 76
illus. no. 42 on p. 76 and illus. 31 (unpaginated)

Serres, Karen (ed.), The Courtauld Collection: A Vision for Impressionism, Paul Holberton Publishing 2019
no. 58, pp. 256-257
Fig. p. 257

Salmon, Dimitri, et al., Le Saint Joseph Charpentier de Georges de la Tour: un don au Louvre de Percy Moore Turner, Paris 2017
pp. 405 and 432n486 ...More

Inscription: de Georges Seurat / fel F

Inscription: 381