Leda and the Swan — Mythological Drawing with White Gouache Highlights

Description

Leda and the Swan drawing in graphite with gouache highlights on paper, with an older card backing and a more recent black paper mount.

This mythological composition depicts a reclining female figure beneath a large swan with outspread wings. The curved neck of the bird echoes the flowing lines of the figure, while loosely drawn branches and foliage establish the surrounding landscape.

Graphite shading gives volume to the body and creates a dark setting around the central figures. White gouache highlights bring light to the swan’s feathers and the drapery. The warm tone of the paper contributes to the restrained palette.

The drawing combines a study of the reclining nude with a classical narrative subject. More carefully modelled passages in the figure contrast with the freer handling of the vegetation, giving the work a varied and expressive surface.

The paper was mounted on card at an earlier date. This assembly was subsequently attached to a larger sheet of black paper, which forms a presentation border around the drawing.

The artist and date are unidentified. No definite signature or date is visible in the photographs.

Subject: Leda and the Swan.
Medium: graphite and gouache on paper.
Drawing dimensions: 25 × 17.8 cm.
Overall dimensions including the black mount: 30 × 22.7 cm.
Support: paper mounted on card, with a later black paper mount.

Condition: yellowish paper tone, small marks, slight edge irregularities and areas of surface wear. Please examine the detailed photographs to assess the condition of the drawing and its mounting.

An appealing work for collectors of figurative drawings, classical mythology and studies of the nude.

Sold unframed, with its mount.