Study for "The Civil Marriage", 1881
Henri Gervexexpand_more
Black chalk heightened with white chalk on tan wove paperexpand_more
Gift of Gabriel P. and Yvonne M.L. Weisbergexpand_more 2023.70.1
Not on Viewexpand_more
Henri Gervex was one of the leading artists of France’s Third Republic. This sketch of a clerk at his desk, on inexpensive tan paper, appears to be the only surviving preparatory drawing for a "The Civil Marriage," a large painting he made for the city hall of Paris's 19th arrondissement. Following the standard training of the École des Beaux-Arts (School of Fine Arts), he worked up preliminary sketches for the entire composition. In this sketch of the clerk at his desk, on inexpensive tan paper, Gervex took pains to get the angle and position of the figure’s left hand exactly right, as evidenced by the additional version in the upper right corner of the drawing. The finished painting shows the clerk as an older, balding figure whose interest in the ceremony appears less acute than the figure as originally drawn.
Details
- Title
- Study for "The Civil Marriage"
- Artist Life
- Paris 1852–Paris 1929
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2023.70.1
- Provenance
- [Galerie Fischer-Kiener, Paris; to Weisberg]; Yvonne and Gabriel Weisberg, Minneapolis; their gift to Mia, 2023.
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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