Daphnis Running toward Chloe
ca. 1798
Medium
Black chalk, brush with brown and gray wash, heightened with white gouache, on light tan wove paper
Dimensions
Sheet: 10 13/16 x 8 15/16 in. (27.5 x 22.7 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Guy Wildenstein Gift, 2012
Accession Number
2012.234
Tags
Art Historical Context
Baron François Gérard, a leading French Neoclassical artist and pupil of Jacques-Louis David, created this delicate drawing around 1798. The scene captures a tender moment from the ancient Greek romance *Daphnis and Chloe* by Longus, in which the young shepherd Daphnis rushes toward his beloved. At a time when France was emerging from revolution, Gérard’s work reflects the era’s renewed interest in classical themes of love, innocence, and pastoral harmony. Executed in black chalk with brown and gray washes, heightened by white gouache on light tan paper, the drawing showcases Gérard’s mastery...