Currently not on view
Four Studies of the Head of a Black Man,
1883
Edmond Joseph Ramus, French, 1822–1890
after Peter Paul Rubens, 1577–1640; born Siegen, Germany; died Antwerp, Belgium
after Peter Paul Rubens, 1577–1640; born Siegen, Germany; died Antwerp, Belgium
x1952-46
This lively etching is a faithful copy after an oil sketch originally painted on wood by Rubens between 1613 and 1615, depicting an unknown man of African descent expressing various emotions. Rubens often used such sketches, painted from life, as source material for his finished compositions, and at least two of the heads from this sketch appear in his paintings from the 1610s. The panel was recorded as having been in French private collections in the nineteenth century and was widely admired when it appeared at auction in Paris in 1883, illustrated in the sales catalog with this etching by Ramus.
Information
Title
Four Studies of the Head of a Black Man
Dates
1883
Maker
Medium
Etching on cream imitation Japanese paper
Dimensions
plate: 20 × 25.5 cm. (7 7/8 × 10 1/16 in.)
sheet: 24.3 × 29.9 cm. (9 9/16 × 11 3/4 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Harold K. Hochschild
Object Number
x1952-46
Place Made
Europe, France
Inscription
Inscribed in plate, lower center: E Ramus as-f d’aprés Rubens
Materials
Techniques
Subject
