Jean-Honoré Fragonard Red Chalk Drawing "The Prophet Nahum"
Item Details
Attributed to Jean-Honoré Fragonard (French, 1732-1806)
The Prophet Nahum, late 18th century
Red chalk on paper
Unsigned
“NAH-UM” inscribed backwards to lower right corner
Jean Thesmar authentication label, along with auction and collection labels to verso
Known Provenance
Hôtel Drouot, Paris, sale no. 8, December 2, 1948
Hôtel Drouot, Paris, sale no. 106, November 9 – 10, 1953
Phillips, New York, October 12, 1978
Ex-collection of Irving Jermansky, Florida
Rococo Master Jean-Honoré Fragonard was a prolific French painter, draftsman and printmaker of the French Enlightenment. Known for his paintings featuring classical subjects, the French elite, and voluptuous and amorous subject matters, Fragonard worked in the studio of Jean Siméon Chardin before working as an apprentice for the renowned Rococo artist François Boucher. In 1752 at only twenty years of age, he entered the Prix de Rome competition, resulting in his first prize award for his work Jeroboam Sacrificing to the Idols. He continued his studies among the most promising students of the Académie royale at the École des élèves protégés in Paris, where he was a student of the Director and highly regarded painter Carle Van Loo. Over time, he acquired an elite clientele particularly interested in his amorous scenes, and eventually gained a reputation as one of the most important French artists of the second half of the eighteenth century. His work is regarded as a staple in the European art history canon, and has been exhibited and collected by numerous prestigious institutions including the National Gallery of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Louvre Museum, and the Hermitage Museum among many others.
Condition
- foxing; discoloration; creasing along the lower and left side edge; frame has areas of loss, nicks, and discolorations.
Dimensions
- measures frame; sight measures 7.5"W x 10.0"H.
- Item not examined outside of mounting
Item #
ITMG762086
