Watteau to Degas: French Drawings from the Frits Lugt Collection
October 6, 2009, through January 10, 2010
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780–1867)
Medallion Portrait of Julie Forestier
1806
Graphite pencil, heightened with watercolor and white gouache on transfer paper, mounted on board
Ingres traced the figure of his fiancée, the painter Julie Forestier, from a larger graphite drawing of her family. He applied watercolor to her hair and eyes and added white gouache highlights to her fashionable afternoon dress. Touches of gouache illuminate Julie’s eyes and earring and impart a slight shimmer to her lips. These changes transform the tracing into a unique work of art that rivals the fineness and intimacy of a painted miniature. |
