Drapery Study of a Kneeling Draped Figure
A kneeling figure's cloth modelled in light and shade with white heightening on a grey ground
A finished study of drapery enveloping a kneeling figure, worked in fine gradations of grey wash with white heightening over a darker grey ground. The heavy cloth falls from the shoulders and gathers into deep, pooling folds that spread across the floor. The features and body are wholly hidden beneath the fabric, so that the folds themselves are the subject. No autograph text appears on the sheet; a small collector's stamp is impressed at the lower corners.
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Folds of heavy cloth in light and shade
The drapery is modelled through carefully graded values, from bright highlights on the raised ridges to deep shadow in the recesses of the folds. The cloth cascades from the figure's shoulders and pools on the ground in broad, angular breaks. Such studies isolate the behaviour of fabric and its illumination for use in painting.
Kneeling figure concealed by drapery
Beneath the fabric a kneeling human form can be read from the disposition of the folds, though no flesh is shown. The bulk of the body reads in the upper mass while the lower cloth spreads outward across the ground. The garment alone defines the pose.