← Georg Raphael Donner

Kneeling Female Nude and Two Studies of Angels

Original title: Kneeling Female Nude and Two Studies of Angels

Artist

Georg Raphael Donner

Date

early 18th century

Medium

Recto: pencil; margins ruled in red chalk at all four edges of paper Verso: black and brown chalk and pencil

Dimensions

12 1/2 x 8 3/8 in. (31.7 x 21.3 cm)

Credit line

Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1947

kurzbeschreibung

Georg Raphael Donner drew a kneeling female figure and two angel studies in pencil, black chalk and brown chalk in the early 18th century. Red chalk lines frame the sheet on all four paper edges.

Description

The main figure kneels, a garment covering her shoulders and arms, hands raised, gaze directed upward. To her left kneels a winged angel, also looking up; on the right another angel spreads its arms. A red border surrounds the drawing, and a signature appears at the bottom edge of the sheet.

Context

Donner, a leading Austrian Baroque sculptor, made this drawing in the early 18th century, likely as a preparatory study for a religious or allegorical work. Figure studies of this kind helped artists prepare paintings or sculptures.

Impact

The upward gazes and gestures give the layout movement and a spiritual note. Because the female nude and the angel studies share one sheet, the image feels like an intimate sketch that reveals the artist's working process directly.

Technique

The front was drawn in pencil, with the margins ruled in red chalk. The back carries drawings in black and brown chalk as well as pencil. The paper measures 31.7 cm in height and 21.3 cm in width.

AI-generated description text

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)