by-nc

Woman seen from behind (recto)

Maker

(artist)
1852-1931

Title

Woman seen from behind (recto)

Date of Production

(circa) 1890

Medium

black chalk (recto and verso) on laid paper (examined under microscope)

Dimensions

Height: 31.5 cm
Width: 24 cm

Accession Number

D.1982.LB.6

Mode of Acquisition

Lillian Browse, gift, 1982

Credit

The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

Copyright

Work in the public domain

Location

Not currently on display

Keywords




Label Text

In this swiftly-executed drawing of a ballet dancer viewed from behind, Forain uses thin, wiry lines extending in all directions from the figure’s waist to suggest the expansiveness of her tutu. Several of these expressive lines reach the edges of the sheet, thrusting the dancer close to the picture plane and emphasising her immediate presence against an almost entirely blank background. Considering her claw-like left hand and largely undefined face, it is apparent that Forain was more interested in rendering the shape and stance of her body than its anatomical details.

Provenance

Lillian Browse (1906-2005), purchased around 1972; Lillian Browse Gift 1982

Exhibition History

The Dancer - Degas, Forain and Lautrec, Portland Art Museum, USA, 02/02/2008-11/05/2008

A Private Collection of late 19th and 20th century Paintings and
Sculpture
, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 12/02/1983-10/04/1983

Literature

The Dancer - Degas, Forain and Lautrec, Portland Art Museum, USA, 2008
p. 244

A Private Collection of late 19th and 20th century Paintings and Sculpture, Courtauld Institute Gallery, London, 1983
cat. no. 16

Inscriptions

Watermark: Watermark: Verso, right edge: "E. COQUELIN".

Inscription: Recto: lower right corner, black chalk or charcoal, signed by the artist: "forain".

Collector's mark: none.

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