Torso of a Man

Michelangelo Buonarroti (after)

Summary

A reproduction produced by the Vasari Society of a drawing by Michelangelo. The drawing is of a male nude, whose torso muscles and left thigh are drawn in detail. The rest of the man is sketched roughly in outline. Some red lines are also visible on the left-hand side of the page; these appear to show two feet (on the left of the man's head), one attached to a leg extending downwards. Text from the accompanying booklet produced by the Vasari Society: "6. MICHELANGELO (b. 1475; d. 1564) TORSO OF A MAN Collection of Henry Oppenheimer, Esq. From the Lempereur, W. Sharp, and Heseltine Collections. Pen and sepia, and red chalk. 23.6 x 20.8 cm. (9 1/4 x 8 3/16 in.). On the reverse of this superb drawing is a red chalk study of a figure in similar position, and a study of legs. We can detect the artist in the very fact of realizing and memorizing the pose he has given to the Christ in the Church of the Minerva at Roma. The pen workmanship is of that type which we associate with Michelangelo's earlier manner; it is in close, rapid strokes which almost suggest the direction of the sculptor's chisel over the surfaces of the form. C. R. [Exhibited at Burlington House, Old Masters, 1879, No. 261. The Athenæum, March 8, 1879; J. A. Symonds, Life of Michelangelo, London, 1893, I, p. 360; K. Frey, Sammlung ausgewählter Briefe an Michelagniolo, Berlin, 1899, p. 187; K. Frey, Die Handzeichnungen Michelagniolos, Berlin, 1911, Nos. 36 and 37; B. Berenson, The Drawings of the Florentine Painters, I, p. 201, II, p. 93, Nos. 1543; Original Drawings by Old Masters of the Italian School, forming part of the Collection of J. P. H(eseltine). Printed privately. London, 1913, Nos. 7 and 8.]"