Zittend mannelijk naakt, op de grond, met de rechterarm leunend op een blok 1765 - 1781

Curator: Jean Grandjean created this study, “Seated Male Nude, on the Ground, with Right Arm Resting on a Block," sometime between 1765 and 1781. It's rendered in pencil and charcoal on toned paper. Editor: He looks completely dejected, utterly swallowed by some profound melancholia. Even in monochrome, that weight is palpable. Curator: Grandjean’s deft handling of chiaroscuro really brings out the musculature, doesn't it? Note the almost photographic detail in the tendons of his feet compared to the ghostly backdrop. There is such emphasis placed on volume and the three-dimensional. Editor: Yes, it's the posture that gets me. He’s slumped so heavily. You can practically feel the resistance of his body against the support of that block. Almost a study in pure despair. Is it just me or does the drawing almost feel unfinished somehow? Curator: Interestingly, some think Grandjean produced studies like this for history paintings that depict the Trojan War. It might provide some context to his raw and vulnerable state, perhaps? We tend to project ourselves onto works, and the art market at this time heavily rewarded dramatic displays of grief and sorrow. Editor: Hmm, so it's not personal, necessarily; it could just be the conventions of the day speaking through the drawing, through Grandjean’s hand and vision? The model becomes simply the pretext for…a specific representation of sorrow? Still, there's something incredibly compelling about his emotional exposure. It transcends simple technique, it really feels to me that Grandjean wants us to understand his raw condition. Curator: Perhaps both. I'm stuck with that tonal quality myself, its sheer, overwhelming bleakness is compelling indeed. Editor: Right? What is technique without feeling, ultimately?