Standing Soldier: Study for the Chapel of Saints Peter and Paul in the Church of Saint-Séverin, Paris
Medium
Conté crayon, red chalk, heightened with white, on blue paper; squared in conté crayon
Dimensions
Sheet: 17 5/16 x 8 7/8 in. (43.9 x 22.5cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Mrs. Carl L. Selden Gift, in memory of Carl L. Selden, 1991
Accession Number
1991.111
Tags
Art Historical Context
This preparatory drawing by Victor-François-Eloi Biennourry captures a standing soldier, likely intended for a larger decorative scheme in the Chapel of Saints Peter and Paul at the Church of Saint-Séverin in Paris. Created between 1851 and 1852, the study reflects the 19th-century French tradition of producing detailed cartoons and studies for church murals and stained-glass windows, where artists worked closely with ecclesiastical patrons to revive religious art amid the period’s renewed interest in medieval and Renaissance styles. Biennourry’s technique demonstrates the careful planning be...