A Reclining Nude with Her Right Arm Raised over a Swift Composition Study [verso]

Deshays employed loose, rapid strokes that give the drawing a sketch‑like quality. Predominantly rendered in black chalk, the artist introduced touches of red chalk to warm selected areas, adding subtle tonal variation to the otherwise monochrome surface. The background consists of swirling, gestural lines that convey energy rather than a defined setting.

Created in the mid‑eighteenth century, the work reflects Deshays’s practice of producing preparatory studies for larger compositions. Its provenance prior to the present collection is not documented, and the verso bears a related swift composition study, indicating it may have been part of a series of gesture exercises.