Studies of Horses, Hands, and Feet (recto); Studies of Heads and Figures (verso)

Description

In Studies of Horses, Hands, and Feet, horse figures occupy the center, right and lower areas of Eugène Delacroix’s sheet, with smaller head and hand studies above. The separate observations make the page an encounter with varied forms rather than one continuous event. Animals and human details share attention, allowing the eye to move between different scales of investigation within the same working surface.

Made around 1822–27 on blue-green paper, the sheet uses pen and brown and iron gall ink on the front. The museum also records heads and figures on the reverse, in a combination of graphite, ink and wash. Those different sides belong to the same working object without becoming one displayed scene. The drawing’s appeal lies in its range of concentrated studies, where the artist’s attention moves between subjects while each retains a distinct material presence.

Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Eugène Delacroix collection.