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Nude Man Carrying a Rudder on His Shoulder

Titianabout 1555–1556

The J. Paul Getty Museum

The J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, United States

In this masterful drawing of a nude man hoisting a rudder on his shoulder, Titian used the blue paper that artists in Venice so often favored. The blue served as a middle tone, with the shadows and outlines drawn in black chalk and the rippling back muscles highlighted in white. Just as in his characteristically textural paintings, Titian combined the three colors to fully model a three-dimensional figure. The smudgy, roughly applied black chalk accentuates the impression of the varied play of light over a sculptural form. The figure's unusual, slightly twisted pose is the focus, rather than such details as the man's facial features.

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  • Title: Nude Man Carrying a Rudder on His Shoulder
  • Creator: Titian (Tiziano Vecellio)
  • Date Created: about 1555–1556
  • Physical Dimensions: 28.7 × 15.6 cm (11 5/16 × 6 1/8 in.)
  • Type: Drawing
  • External Link: Find out more about this object on the Museum website.
  • Medium: Black chalk, heightened with white chalk, on blue paper
  • Terms of Use: Open Content
  • Number: 87.GB.35
  • Culture: Italian
  • Credit Line: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
  • Creator Display Name: Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) (Italian, about 1487 - 1576)
  • Classification: Drawings (Visual Works)
The J. Paul Getty Museum

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