France, 19th century / 1858
Sheet of Studies and Sketches
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Sheet of Studies and Sketches as drawing (France, 19th century · 1858).
The date Degas wrote on this drawing is incorrect; he didn't visit Florence until 1858, and must have inscribed the sheet years later.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this drawing as graphite, pen and dark brown ink, and watercolor on thick ivory wove paper and credits Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917).
The museum's collection notes: Degas traveled to Florence, Italy, in July 1858, where he made this sheet of studies. The featured imagery is fragmented and dissociated, suggesting the young artist's engagement with art of the past. The refined female head drawn at center in graphite was copied from a drawing then attributed to Leonardo da Vinci in the Uffizi Gallery's collection. Other sketches record Degas's responses to Florentine sculpture. At upper right, he sketched an informal portrait of his cousin Giulia Bellelli, probably from life.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtSheet of Studies and SketchesOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.