Study of a Standing Male, Early 16th century Circle of Andrea Mantegna

Circle of Andrea Mantegna – Early 16th century

Study of a Standing Male Nude, probably for Hercules

Pen and brown ink, brown wash, heightened with white, on brown prepared paper
33.5 x 17 cm

Collector’s stamp lower left: Étienne Desperet, known as Auguste Desperet, Lugt 721.
On the reverse: stamp of the Pierre-Olivier Dubaut collection, Lugt 2103b, and an old inscription attributing the drawing to Mantegna.

Provenance

Étienne Desperet collection, known as Auguste Desperet;
Pierre-Olivier Dubaut collection, then by descent;
Artcurial, Paris, 30 March 2011, lot 0059, as Northern Italian School, early 16th century;
Private collection.



This refined Renaissance drawing belongs to the artistic circle of Andrea Mantegna and reflects the powerful graphic language developed around the master in Northern Italy at the beginning of the 16th century.

The figure, seen from behind, stands in a strong contrapposto pose, the body treated with remarkable sculptural presence. The long club held at the side suggests that this may be a study for Hercules, one of the heroic subjects especially favoured in the Mantegnesque world.

The technique — brown ink and wash, heightened with white on prepared paper — gives the figure a striking sense of relief. The modelling of the back, shoulders and legs recalls the antique-inspired monumentality so characteristic of Mantegna and his followers. The artist builds the anatomy through subtle tonal transitions, allowing light to fall across the body almost as if upon a carved marble surface.

Several comparisons support the connection with Mantegna’s circle. The sheet relates in spirit and technique to Hercules Wrestling with Antaeus in the British Museum, attributed to the Circle of Andrea Mantegna, as well as to the Louvre’s Hercules and the Nemean Lion, from the Studio of Andrea Mantegna. The pose also recalls the standing Roman soldier in Mantegna’s fresco The Judgement of Saint James in the Ovetari Chapel, Padua, particularly in the contrapposto stance and treatment of the hair.

The drawing is further distinguished by its important provenance. Étienne Desperet, painter, draughtsman, engraver and collector, assembled a notable collection of Old Master drawings. The later presence of the sheet in the Pierre-Olivier Dubaut collection confirms its long-standing appreciation among connoisseurs of drawings.

A rare and elegant Renaissance sheet, combining anatomical strength, antique inspiration and the refined chiaroscuro technique associated with the Mantegnesque tradition.