Study of Hands for "Christ Among the Doctors"

Study of Hands for "Christ Among the Doctors"

Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In 1842, Ingres received a commission from King Louis Philippe and Queen Marie-Amélie for the chapel at the Chateau de Bizy. His canvas "Christ Among the Doctors" remained incomplete when Louis Philippe was overthrown in 1848, but an 1851 engraving records the appearance of the composition at that time. The artist spent a decade finishing the work (1852−62) and this drawing relates to changes he made during that period, specifically the addition of a cropped figure in the lower right corner. It demonstrates how the artist used drawings to prepare even the smallest details in his paintings.

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.