Acis and Galatea
Artist
Antoine-Jean Gros
(French, 1771-1835)
CultureFrench
Dateca. 1833
MediumGraphite on paper with a drawing on the verso
Credit LineMuseum purchase
Object number2018.14.1
On View
Chrysler Museum of Art, 310, BIN, 30
Pair/Pair
Label TextAntoine-Jean Gros
French, 1771–1833
Acis and Galatea, ca. 1833
Graphite on paper
These two sheets show five quick sketches for Acis and Galatea, the large painting shown next to this case. Look at the painting and read the story. Then look at these sketches. Can you tell which one he drew first? Gros tried different poses and compositions to express the terror of the young couple hiding in a cave. None of the sketches match the final work exactly, although the one to the left is closest. The outlines of the background match the painting, but other details are still different. The drawings show that Gros kept changing the poses until the end. The Chrysler Museum of Art recently had the good fortune of being able to acquire these two surviving sketches for the last major painting by Gros.
Museum purchase 2018.14.1-2