Study from the Antique c. 19th century

Editor: Alphonse Legros's "Study from the Antique," housed at Harvard, presents a life study rendered in pencil. It feels like a ghost, an echo. What stories do you think Legros was trying to capture in this figure? Curator: Perhaps not stories, but a quest for idealized form. Legros dove into classical sculpture, chasing after some unattainable perfection. Notice the shading, the ghostliness you mentioned – does it hint at his own doubts, his own struggle with artistic ideals? Editor: I hadn't considered the artist's internal struggle. Thanks, that offers a whole new perspective.