Melina Eudoxie Daviau (1874-1961): Academic Male Nudes 1900-1907

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The three Daviau drawings arrived from France last week. I swear, I have to hold my breath for two weeks while these packages make their way from Europe to me. I warn the sellers to securely package the drawings and use the American format address because the Post Office here has a long history of losing and destroying poorly wrapped drawings and you just have to hope the seller is not lazy or worse. I pinned the drawings to the wall in the computer room (last two photographs)and one day I will have to buy frames for them. They really are well executed drawings. The line technique Daviau used is really different from many of the other drawings of the same time period. Up close you see these big contour following line strokes but as you pull back away from the drawing, the drawings become more sculptural and less like drawings. The human eye does all the work in making the drawings come alive at the optimal viewing distance.

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