Studies for the Archangel Raphael c. 1645

Curator: Looking at this drawing, there is something immediately dynamic and urgent about the figure in motion, despite the stillness of the medium. Editor: Indeed. This is Eustache Le Sueur's, "Studies for the Archangel Raphael." Le Sueur, who lived from 1617 to 1655, produced this work, now held at the Harvard Art Museums. The sheet measures about 22 by 30 centimeters. You know, the immediacy speaks to its function as a study. Curator: A study focusing intensely on the construction of form and gesture, most likely for a larger painting. One can almost sense the artist working through the layering of chalk and paper to create the drapery, the tension in the angel's leg. Editor: And these studies would have been integral to the academic system, showing the art world and patrons that Le Sueur possessed the necessary skills for grander, more public commissions. Curator: It really gives insight into the material process behind creating religious imagery during this period. Editor: It certainly underscores how art served not just devotional, but also socio-political purposes. I find the negotiation between these two functions ever present.