Nude Study

Anderson is a figurative artist who developed a painting style marked by an interest in tonalism and a sense of structure in the tradition of Piero della Francesca, Degas, and Balthus. Born in Detroit, Anderson studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Cranbrook Academy of Art before settling in New York in 1953. A stay at the American Academy in Rome in 1958-60 marked a key moment in his formation. Drawing from the model was central to his practice either in his studies for paintings or as part of his teaching. "My drawings are only good when I draw from life," he said. The grid on which the figure is constructed in the present drawing highlights the importance of measurement in Anderson's method, a notion at the core of his teaching.