Georges Braque, Nude study, 1907-1908
1907-1908
Original etching in black
49 x 33 cm
Annotated in pencil lower left "épreuve d'artiste", signed in pencil by the artist lower right
Georges Visat print run, 1953 by; Maeght éditeur, Paris
Catalogue raisonné : Vallier 1
The first of the artist’s ten Cubist etchings, this original etching is undoubtedly one of the preparatory studies for Georges Braque’s large 1908 painting Grand nu oil on canvas 140 x 100 cm, Paris MNAM.
Here, the woman is represented by rather geometric shapes, but still with fine features, in a reserved attitude, her head tilted slightly to the left. After an initial run of a few trial proofs at the time, 25 proofs on Auvergne and 30 proofs on Rives were printed in 1953.
About the author
Georges Braque (1882-1963)
The creator of Cubism with Pablo Picasso around 1907, after the First World War he adopted a more traditional aesthetic with a fairly dark color palette. Still lifes and landscapes are bathed in a calm, silent atmosphere. Georges Braque was also a painter of birds, which figured prominently in his late work. In 1953, they were given pride of place on the ceiling of the Salle Henri II at the Louvre. A close friend of poets such as René Char, Francis Ponge and Pierre Reverdy, Georges Braque illustrated numerous texts.
