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Cleveland Museum of Art

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Unknown — Study of an Old Man
Unknown

Study of an Old Man

1886

This black chalk study captures the weathered features of an elderly subject with remarkable sensitivity, demonstrating the artist's skilled use of the medium to model form through careful gradations of tone. The drawing emphasizes the expressive qualities of age, with particular attention given to the facial contours and the subtle play of light across the sitter's face. The spontaneous yet controlled application of chalk suggests this work served as a preparatory study, likely for a larger or more finished composition.

Medium
black chalk

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About this work

Unknown, Study of an Old Man, 1886

This black chalk study captures the weathered features of an elderly subject with remarkable sensitivity, demonstrating the artist's skilled use of the medium to model form through careful gradations of tone. The drawing emphasizes the expressive qualities of age, with particular attention given to the facial contours and the subtle play of light across the sitter's face. The spontaneous yet controlled application of chalk suggests this work served as a preparatory study, likely for a larger or more finished composition.

Medium
black chalk
Year
1886
Seen at
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Related themes

Elderly male subject, Old Master, Contemplative, Unknown Artist, Study, European, Portrait, Realism, Oil on Canvas, Renaissance

More works by Unknown

Collected by

Richard Caswell, Sebastián Naranjo, Jonah Handel, Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris, Ethan Elkins, Alex Capecelatro, Mihail Lari, Cleveland Museum of Art