Drawing from the Antique: Cast of a faun

Adolphe Valette 1876 - 1942

Summary

Study of a faun standing next to a tree stump, one hand held up to the side of his head, his other hand resting on the tree stump. This drawing is from Valette's early period of study in Bordeaux, France, which culminated in the award of a travelling scholarship to England in 1904.

Display Label

Drawing from the Antique: Cast of Pan 1904? Adolphe Valette 1876-1942 Black chalk on paper Valette had a precocious talent for drawing and won many prizes while still a student. This detailed and highly finished drawing was typical of academic art school training. Its indistinct date of 1904 suggests it may belong to his period of study in Bordeaux. That year Valette won the travelling scholarship which enabled him to come to England. Valette's exquisite drawing is a copy of a plaster cast of an antique marble of the god of shepherds, Pan. His identity is indicated by the seven reeded flute held in the right hand and by two horns on his head. Sometimes Pan is also shown with goat's ears and legs like the fauns, other mythological woodland beings with whom this god is often associated. Purchased with financial assistance from the MGC/V&A Purchase Grant Fund, the National Art Collections Fund and The Friends of Manchester City Galleries 1996.31