Joan of Arc
1898
Medium
Graphite and colored pencils on tan wove board
Dimensions
Sheet: 15.8 × 11.7 cm (6 1/4 × 4 5/8 in.); Mount: 22.9 × 18.7 cm (9 1/16 × 7 3/8 in.)
Classification
prints and drawing
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
186415
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Imbued with the sinuous linear style of Toorop’s most celebrated works, this small drawing merges medieval subject matter with the graphic language of Symbolism. Cleverly situated within the voids of a capital letter E, Toorop’s title figure recalls the conventions of medieval manuscript illumination. Indeed, like many of Toorop’s drawings, this work was likely intended for inclusion in a book. The swirling parallel lines in the saint’s hair and the intensity of her downcast posture assert the s...
About the Artist
Jan Toorop · 1858–1928
Johannes Theodorus 'Jan' Toorop (1858–1928) was one of the most influential Dutch artists at the turn of the twentieth century, whose distinctive Symbolist style and flowing Art Nouveau lines left an indelible mark on European art. Born on December 20, 1858, in Purworejo on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia), Toorop brought a unique synthesis of Eastern and Western...