Nude Woman Leaning on a Pedestal — Principes de Dessein

An accomplished academic figure study in the manière de crayon, ingeniously imitating the soft, granular texture of a red chalk drawing.

After François Boucher; engraved by Edmé Bouchardon. From Principes de Dessein d'Après Nature. Published by Mondhare et Jean, Paris, c. 1785.

The Principes de Dessein d'Après Nature compiled academic figure studies for use in French drawing schools, drawing on plates by leading eighteenth-century masters. The crayon-manner technique, perfected by Gilles Demarteau and Jean-Charles François mid-century, allowed engravers to reproduce the appearance of red chalk drawings with remarkable fidelity, making the great académies of Boucher and his contemporaries available to students throughout Europe.

Etching and engraving in crayon manner. Sheet size approximately 41.0 × 29.7 cm. Very Good.