Seated Nude Boy
Medium
Red chalk
Dimensions
9 1/8 x 8 7/8 in. (23.1 x 22.5 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Mrs. Carl L. Selden Gift, in memory of Carl L. Selden, 1987
Accession Number
1987.93
Tags
Art Historical Context
Edme Bouchardon’s *Seated Nude Boy* exemplifies the refined draftsmanship of eighteenth-century France. Working primarily as a sculptor for the court of Louis XV, Bouchardon was celebrated for his elegant, classically inspired figures. This red-chalk study captures a young boy in a relaxed yet poised seated pose, allowing the artist to explore the subtle play of light across youthful anatomy. The warm, velvety quality of red chalk—favored by French academicians—lends the figure a lifelike softness while emphasizing graceful contours and gentle modeling. Created as a preparatory exercise, the ...
About the Artist
Edme Bouchardon · 1698–1762
Born 29 May 1698; died 27 July 1762. Bouchardon was a student of Guillaume Coustou, and won the prix de Rome in 1722. He spent ten years (1722-1732) in Rome, Italy working on various projects for Pope Clement XII. In 1732 Bouchardon was recalled to Paris and named sculptor to the king. Bouchardon became a professor at the Académie Royale in 1746. He worked on an equestrian monument of Louis XV, Ki...