Arguably the greatest portraitist of the modern age, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780–1867) once told a pupil that if he placed a sign above his studio door, it would read École de dessin (School of Drawing). During Ingres' lifetime, collectors valued his drawings as highly as his paintings, and the admiration for them continues unabated to this day.
This selection of sixteen drawings and three letters from the Morgan chronicles the major periods of Ingres's artistic production, beginning when he was a young student at the Académie Royale in Toulouse and ending after he returned from his tenure in Rome and operated one of the most successful studios in Paris. Included are portraits of his family and friends, commissions executed for wealthy international sitters, and preparatory drawings for several of his most important history paintings. Ingres was devoted to his craft and sensitive to criticism. His fascination with the beauty of the natural world and its inhabitants is evident in the exquisite works presented here.
The exhibition is made possible by the Rita Markus Fund.
This online exhibition is presented in conjunction with the exhibition Ingres at the Morgan on view September 9 through November 27, 2011, organized by Esther Bell, Moore Curatorial Fellow.