Sleeping woman. Etude

Taras Shevchenko. Sleeping woman. Plaster cast boy head. Etudes. Other sketches. [1839 – 1840, no later than April. St. Petersburg].
Paper, pencil. 21,7 × 28,7 cm.
Taras Shevchenko National Museum, № g – 412.

On the back -"Sitter in different postures. Etudes. "Students of the Academy of Art". Outline.

Top right is marked in pencil: Number 170 (catalog number of V.Tarnowski's Chernihiv museum of ukrainian antiquities); left: 218 × 288.

In the middle of the page, simply processed sketch of sleeping woman; above – light sketch similar to the composition (the similar one) and the human figure in the bed under the blanket. Right – sketch of plaster casts boy head (in other perspective). Bottom two sketches of compositions likely to story "Dying Gladiator". Etude of women might be searching for watercolors of 1840 "Odalisque" and "Maria".

For dating included a picture of an "Sitter and student of the Academy of Arts", which contains a similar sketch of a woman, and outline sketch to oil etude "Sitter in Marsyas posture.

In the description of drawings Shevchenko, which were in his academic workshops, prepared in 1861 by G.M. Chestahivsky, registered under number 101.

Scientific description provided in 1900 [Catalog of V. Tarnowski's Museum of Ukrainian antiquity / arranged by B.D. Grinchenko. – Chernigov, 1900. – T. 2. – p. 173. – № 170]

First commented and reproduced in 1932 by A.P. Novitsky named "Woman sleeping and infant head" [T. Shevchenko Complete Works. – [Kharkiv, 1932. – T. 8]. – p. 24. – № 201. – Tab. 128].

Mentioned with name "Sleeping woman and other sketches" [T. Shevchenko Complete Works: in 10 vols. – K., 1961. – Vol. 7, bk. 2. – p. 23. – № 243].

Storage areas: from April 1861 – property of M.M.Lazarevsky, later purchased by St. Petersburg's Ukrainian community, not earlier than July 1861 – A.O. Kozachkovsky, not later than 1875 came to V.P. Kakhovski; from 1891 Kakhovski family, not later than 1893 transferred to S.D. Brazol; since 1898 – a collection of V. Tarnowskі; from 1899 – V. Tarnowski's Chernihiv museum of ukrainian antiquities, 1925 – Chernihiv Historical Museum, from 1932 – Gallery of pictures by T.H. Shevchenko (Kharkiv), from 1948 – State Museum of T.H. Shevchenko (Kyiv).

I.M. Verykivska

After publication: Taras Shevchenko Complete Works in 10 volumes. – K.: ed. of Acad. Sci. of UkrSSR, 1961, t. 7, bk. 2, № 243 (image); T.H. Shevchenko Complete Works in 12 volumes. – K.: Naukova Dumka, 2003, v. 7, p. 428 – 429 (notes).