Academic Nudes of the Female Youth

Georges Sauveur Maury (1872- ?) (Three Girls by the Sea)
------------------------------------------

I thought I would go ahead and post these before I misplaced the folder they are in. I browsed through thousands of files looking specifically for Academic Nudes of The Female Youth. As I have found in my many years of collecting, they so seldom come up for sale and are so expensive when they do come up that one would be fortunate indeed to obtain a quality nude. I am not really sure why this subject matter (pre & post adolescent female youths) is so scarce, although it may simply be the mores of the 19th & early 20th centuries that prevented the artist from exploring Academic Nudes of this age group. As I was researching crayon manner prints I visited the Hunterian Museum (Glasgow, Scotland) website and found several beautiful, very sensitively drawn drawings by Beatrix Whistler (1857-1896).

--------------------------------------

Erwin Hubert (1883- 1963) .... Madchenakt..1918

Beatrix Whistler (1857-1896)(Courtsey of the Hunterian Museum Collection, Glasgow)

Beatrix Whistler (1857-1896)(Courtsey of the Hunterian Museum, Glasgow)

Beatrix Whistler (1857-1896)(Courtsey Hunterian Museum, Glasgow)

Beatrix Whistler (1857-1896) (Courtsey Hunterian Museum, Glasgow)

Oscar Heller (1870-1938) ...Morning Toilet

18th Century Northern European School: Red Chalk Drawing of Two Nude Amorini

This nice little red chalk study of two Putti or Amorini came from a dealer in London who specializes in early Old Masters, drawings and prints. This is actually a red chalk drawing from an unknown artist from a Northern European School in the 18th Century. The two young nude boys or Amorini seem to be conspiring about some secret in the way all little boys conspire. A beautiful little drawing of a classic subject.
-------------------------------------

Examples of Crayon Manner Prints

Here are a few examples of 18th Century Chalk Manner or Crayon Manner prints for your enjoyment:
------------------------------------

Bernard-Romain Julien (1802-1871)- Male Nude, 1833- Cours de Dessin Crayon Manner Etching

I must make a slight correction in this post after doing some research on the french artist Bernard-Romain Julien (1802 - 1871). I will leave the description of crayon manner print stand below, yet I now believe that the below listed print is indeed a lithograph and not a crayon manner print as I originally listed since my research shows that Julien preferred lithography in producing prints for his drawing course..... so I will reclassify this print as a lithograph.

----------------------------------

Discussion of the crayon manner or chalk manner print:

----------------------------------

I discovered this process after some research I did when another red chalk manner print arrived into my collection last month. I have posted a copy of that print above, along with several other examples of the process. Chalk manner prints were made in as many as three colors: black, red, and white. I have also seen these types of etchings referred to as "crayon manner" prints in several intaglio reference sources.

------------------------------
The crayon manner or chalk manner etching is basically an intaglio engraving done on metal whose goal it is to imitate chalk and crayon drawings, hence those terms used to designate the process. The process was first used in 1735 by Pond and Knapton in England and soon after by Jean-Charles Francois in France. The results obtained by Francois were weak in comparison to the exquisite prints produced from the improvements made to the process by the engraver Gilles Demarteau (1722-1776). Demarteau was born in Leige, France in 1722. After becoming a member of the Academy of Paris in 1769, he was appointed by King Louis XV to the position of Court Engraver. Demarteau is considered by scholars to have been one of the most important engravers of his period. Jean-Charles Francois first presented his results to the Royal Academy of Painting, whose members complimented him for finding a technique for "perpetuating the drawings of the masters and multiplying examples of the most beautiful ways of drawing". One should remember that engraving was the only reproductive technique available in the 18th century and the prints produced from the process were enjoying an immense popularity at the time. In fact the process was used to make facsimile copies of drawings by Fragonard, Watteau, and Boucher. In fact, Boucher actually drew some one thousand drawings which were expressly done to be engraved by Demarteau. Subsequently, Louis-Marin Bonnet had the idea of increasing the number of plates so as to be able to reproduce three color drawings (black, red chalk, and white chalk).
-----------------------------------------
Crayon manner prints enjoyed great success in all of Europe up until the invention of lithography, which stole from it most of its exclusive effects since lithography allowed the artist to place his idea directly upon the stone for printing. The first engravers using crayon or chalk manner techniques worked with a tool having three points in order to obtain a crayon or chalk effect. The three points of the tool were not of the same length so that the lines would not be clear cut. Hatching and cross-hatching was then done with roulettes, little rollers with unequally distributed teeth which mounted like spurs onto a wooden handle. Finally, in order to mat the copper plate, a kind of punch called a mace-head or mattoir was used. Its end was made of little teeth which penetrated the plate to be matted. The copper plate was covered with a ground which was worked with the above mentioned tools and then the plate was etched in the same way as any other etched plate. The result was that the plate became covered with dotted lines. When printed, the lines are somewhat blurred as in crayon drawing and can be more or less fine depending on the roulette used.
-----------------------------
There is a second way of doing crayon manner work which was imported from England to France at the end of the 18th century. Gainesborough worked with this method around 1760 as well as several other English artists. The soft ground manner practiced in England was taken up by Decamps in France and by Felician Rops in Belgium. Soft ground crayon manner etching is done by scouring the plate then covering it with a soft ground. There are various receipts for the ground available to the artist today. When the soft ground is dry, a piece of light paper is placed on the plate and the artist proceeds to draw on it with a relatively hard lead pencil. Each stroke of the pencil will cause the soft ground to be transferred to the paper and leave the copper plate exposed beneath. By changing the pressure on the paper and the thickness of the paper, a variety of effects can be achieved.
------------------------------------

Caption: Sitting Male Nude

Artist: Bernard-Romain Julien (1802-1871)

Medium: Lithograph on paper, part of Julien's Cours de Dessin (Drawing Course)

Dated: 1833

Francesco Jacovacci (1838 - 1908) Nudo Accademico Di Giovanneto Seduto...Seated Nude Male Youth

Gallerie Goupil, Paris ..circa 1860

-------------------------------------------------

Francesco Jacovacci was born in Rome in 1838. He trained under Alessandro Marini (1831 - 1874) who worked in the gallery of Duke Cesarini. Jacovacci later worked in the atelier of Allessandro Capalti. In Paris ,he was introduced to the famous 19th century Gallerie Goupil (Adolphe Goupil 1806 - 1893) for whom he provided easel paintings. His works were exhibited in the Art Exhibition of Rome along with the works of Barilla, Joris Biseo and other artists. In 1879 he published a series of articles about "Artistic Rome". In 1880 he presented his painting: Michaelangelo at the body of Victoria Colorno (Naples, Capodimonte Museum) at the Exhibition of Turin. In 1878, he participated in the important L'Exposition Universelle in Paris with his painting "Return from the Baptism". During the last decades of his life up until his death in 1908, he was director of the National Gallery of Modern Art which is located in the Palazzo delle Esposizioni. Jacovacci was a successful painter of historical and genre subjects. He was also an influential art critic and writer. He was awarded a knighthood for his achievements.

In bringing new works into my collection, I try to add examples of various differing mediums, including prints, drawings, works on paper, and paintings of various types. This is a beautiful pen and ink drawing on paper. It exemplifies Jacovacci's artistic talents and his ability to control his medium. It is the first pen and ink drawing added to my collection.
----------------------------------------

Caption: Seated Nude Youth

Artist: Francesco (Francis) Jacovacci (1838-1908)

Medium: Pen and Ink on paper

Dated: circa 1850-70

------------------------------------

Here are a few examples of Jacovacci's works including several pen and ink drawings:

--------------------------------------

Standing Male Nude ..

Standing Male Nude..rear view

Male Peasant....

Female Peasant ... (Drawings above: Courtesy Mattia Jona..Master Drawings and Prints..La Portantina di Mattia Jona, Milan, Italy..If you are looking for original Old Master Prints and Drawings, I highly recommend Mattia Jona. He is knowledgeable and speaks fluent English. Visit his website when you have time. (www.mattiajona.com/)

Dreams...

Birth of a Prince..