Artwork
Bearded Man in Profile (recto) / Woman Looking Up (verso)
Bearded Man in Profile (recto) / Woman Looking Up (verso) is a graphite drawing by the Romanticist artist Alexandre Bida. It dates from 1859 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Alexandre Bida’s drawing, dated 1859, presents two complementary studies on a single sheet of blue‑wove paper. The recto features a bearded male profile rendered in swift graphite lines, while the verso contains a faint sketch of a woman looking upward. Both images are executed in a light, sketchy manner characteristic of rapid observational work.
Subject & Meaning
The front image captures a man with an unkempt beard and hair, his head inclined slightly, suggesting a moment of casual contemplation. The reverse figure, a woman gazing upward, introduces a contrasting gesture, perhaps indicating differing emotional states or a study of varied human expressions.
Technique & Style
Bida employed graphite alone, allowing the medium’s softness to produce delicate, loosely drawn contours without heavy shading. The blue‑gray paper, speckled with fine dots, adds a subtle texture that interacts with the quick, expressive strokes, reflecting a practice focused on immediacy and emotional resonance.
Context
Created in the mid‑nineteenth century, the drawing aligns with Romantic-era interests in individual feeling and spontaneous mark‑making. Artists of this period often favored rapid sketches to capture fleeting expressions, a concern evident in Bida’s economical use of line and his emphasis on mood over detailed finish.
Artist & collection
