Study, Head of a Boy 1772 - 1782

Therèse Éléonore Lingée created this sanguine drawing, "Study, Head of a Boy," using red chalk. Immediately, the curls capture your attention, a mass of intricate spirals achieved through short, deliberate strokes. Lingée masterfully uses the chalk to create depth, with areas of dense hatching giving way to lighter, more airy passages, evoking a sense of three-dimensionality on a flat surface. Consider how the formal qualities destabilize established portrait conventions. The subject is off-center, and the gaze is directed away, creating a sense of detachment. The lack of idealization disrupts the traditional representation of childhood innocence and beauty. Lingée presents a study in form and light rather than a sentimental portrait. The drawing becomes a semiotic exercise, inviting us to decode the relationship between line, tone, and the construction of meaning. Lingée's work reflects a broader artistic and philosophical concern with the nature of representation. It functions not merely as a study of a boy's head, but as a meditation on the very act of seeing and interpreting.