Education of Marie de Medicis
1700-1799
Medium
Pen and brown ink, over traces of graphite, on cream laid paper
Dimensions
41 × 26.7 cm (16 3/16 × 10 9/16 in.)
Classification
pen and ink drawings
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
109163
Art Historical Context
This delicate pen and ink drawing by Nicolas Pierre Loir captures a moment from the Education of Marie de’ Medici. Created on cream laid paper with fine brown ink over light graphite, the work measures just over sixteen inches tall and exemplifies the refined draftsmanship prized in eighteenth-century French studios. Loir’s precise linework suggests a preparatory study, where quick yet controlled strokes could explore composition and gesture before a larger painting or engraving. The subject recalls the Italian-born queen whose patronage helped shape French Baroque art, here portrayed in a sc...