Drawing of a Woman's Bust

On the sheet is an ink and pen bust-length portrait study of a female model, which was likely created as part of the educational process at an art school in the early 20th century or as part of the artist's personal professional development. The composition represents a typical academic practice of constructing a bust image, in which attention is focused on the interpretation of the shape of the head, shoulder girdle, and the overall plastic coordination of the figure's parts. The woman is depicted with her shoulders in a frontal position and her head slightly turned. Her short “garçon” hairstyle refers to the fashion trends of the 1920s, which freed the female image from the academic cliché of a lush hairstyle or covered head. The model's face is interpreted in a generalised manner, but with the preservation of individual features, in particular, the line of the eyebrows, the oval of the eyes, and the characteristic relief of the cheeks and chin are emphasised. The off-the-shoulder dress has a classic cut, allowing the viewer to focus on the structure of the neck, collarbone, and upper chest. Particular attention is paid to the development of the light and shadow model of the form, where the varying intensity of the ink strokes enables the author to achieve a three-dimensional effect. You can see the subtle work with linear differentiation: the soft strokes on the face contrast with the harder contours of the shoulder silhouette, which shows a conscious compositional organisation of the space. On the reverse side of the sheet, there are two fragments of a drawing, obviously created from life as part of the same series of training exercises: the first is part of a female torso, cut off at the level of the chest and pelvis; the second is a fragment of a lower limb, probably from another figure. Both elements are executed with confident lines and clear anatomical logic. These fragments could have been created during a life drawing session, which was an important component of the artist's academic training at both the studio and composition levels. Overall, the letter demonstrates a high degree of graphic discipline characteristic of the academic school. The work is an example of a teaching practice that combines copying from life with the study of classical plastic arts canons aimed at forming precise visual thinking. It also illustrates the transition from traditional academicism to a more individualised artistic vision, characteristic of the early 20th century, with an emphasis on the psychological expressiveness of the model and the materiality of form.

On the obverse: illegible signature; “13/1 19”. On the reverse: “31/10 08”; signature of Yulian Zaiats; illegible inscription.

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery