Royal Tiger

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Artist: Eugène Delacroix (French, 1798–1863)
Medium: Black chalk, incised, verso prepared with red chalk for transfer
Size: 9 9/16 x 17 7/16 in. (24.29 x 44.29 cm) (sheet)
Museum: Minneapolis Institute of Art
Rights: Public Domain Mark

This drawing relates closely to one of Eugène Delacroix’s most important early lithographs, Royal Tiger. Delacroix’s lithographs of wild animals and feral horses date to 1828–33, when he was studying in various menageries with the sculptor Antoine-Louis Barye. (See Barye’s sketchbook on display in the third gallery of this exhibition.) In the summer of 1829, Delacroix and Barye were permitted to sketch the remains of a dead lion at the Jardin des Plantes in Paris. One of those studies, now in the Louvre, furnished the model for the tiger’s pose in the Minneapolis drawing and subsequent print.

Delacroix incised the drawing—that is, traced the outlines with a sharp point—to transfer the design to a new surface. The incision lines around the tiger’s head, especially around the ears, do not correspond to the contours of the drawing but do match those of the print. Their surprising liveliness indicates that Delacroix continued to invent and refine the composition even at this late stage.

Text: Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia), CC BY 4.0.