Monkey

Georges Seurat

1884 · Conté crayon · Drawings and Prints

Seurat imparted a timeless, idealized appearance to this monkey by showing the animal in strict profile, with minimal detail, and independent of a setting. He defined the essential aspects of the monkey in light and shade, not through line, using hatching and cross-hatching in Conté crayon and retaining the paper support as the light source. This study is one of many that Seurat made for "La Grande Jatte" (1886, Art Institute of Chicago), the canonical modern image of the Parisian bourgeoisie enjoying their leisure on a Sunday afternoon.

Artist

Georges Seurat

Date

1884

Medium

Conté crayon

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Bequest of Miss Adelaide Milton de Groot (1876-1967), 1967