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Saint Louis Washing the Feet of the Sick

Date

ca. 1654

Creator

Eustache Le Sueur
Raclin Murphy Museum of Art

Although he Le Sueur came to be known as the “French Raphael” because of his geometric compositions, clear treatment of light, and harmonious use of color, he never traveled to Italy and knew of the Italian renaissance master’s work primarily from prints.

The present drawing is a study for the main figure in Saint Louis Washing the Feet of the Sick (ca. 1654, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tours), painted for the Benedictine Abbey of Marmoutiers near Tours. Figure studies working out the details of proportion, scale, volume, and modeling were an integral part of the creative process, addressed after the composition had been approved. Studies for two other figures in this painting are now in the Musée du Louvre and the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Generally, such studies served as guides either for the artists themselves or for their assistants, as they worked on the final canvas.

It was the custom of French kings to wash the feet of the poor on Holy Thursday. In 1609 the Counter-Reformation bishop Francis de Sales (1567–1622) published a book entitled Introduction to the Devout Life, which described the tradition in detail.

from Snay, The Epic and the Intimate: French Drawings from the John D. Reilly Collection (Notre Dame, 2011)

Images

This is called Saint Louis Washing the Feet of the Sick within the category of Drawings.Open in external viewer application
This is called Saint Louis Washing the Feet of the Sick within the category of Drawings.
This is called Saint Louis Washing the Feet of the Sick within the category of Drawings.

Metadata

Creator
Eustache Le Sueur (French, 1616 - 1655)
Date
ca. 1654
Classification
Drawings
Medium
Black and white chalk on brown laid paper, laid down on beige card
Dimensions
10 1/2 x 11 in. (26.67 x 27.94 cm)
Credit Line
Bequest of John D. Reilly, ND '63, '64
Copyright Status
Public domain
Subject
kings

Metadata

Accession Number
2014.061.193
Campus Location
Raclin Murphy Museum of Art
Access

Not on view, please request access

Metadata

Contact Us

Our collection information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. If you have spotted an error, please contact Raclin Murphy Museum of Art at RMMACollections@nd.edu.


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