The Sleeping Model
1885
Medium
Etching with drypoint, aquatint and roulette on ivory wove paper
Dimensions
Image: 17.6 × 23.6 cm (6 15/16 × 9 5/16 in.); Plate: 20.8 × 26.1 cm (8 1/4 × 10 5/16 in.); Sheet: 31.7 × 40.4 cm (12 1/2 × 15 15/16 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
42702
Art Historical Context
**The Sleeping Model**, created by French artist Albert Bes in 1885, captures an intimate moment of repose with a slumbering figure, likely drawn from the artist's studio life. Besnard, a prominent painter and printmaker of the late 19th century, was celebrated for his expressive and atmospheric works that bridged Realism and emerging Symbolist tendencies. This etching reflects the era's fascination with the female form in art studios, where models posed for academic studies, evoking a sense of quiet vulnerability and beauty. Printed on luxurious ivory wove paper, the work showcases Besnard's...
About the Artist
Albert Besnard
Paul-Albert Besnard, known as Albert Besnard, was born on June 2, 1849, in Paris to an artistic family: his father, Louis Adolphe Ferdinand Besnard, was a history painter and pupil of Ingres, while his mother, Marie Louise Pauline Vaillant, was a noted miniaturist trained under Lizinska de Mirbel. Precociously talented, he began his training under Jean-François Brémond before entering the École de...