1874
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Sleeping Beggar (Mendiant endormi) is a 1874 ink by Alphonse Legros, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This etching shows a bearded man slumped on the ground, fast asleep. His head rests on his arm, and his legs are stretched out awkwardly. The background is dark, with a few rough shapes that look like furniture or a wall. The lines are scratchy and uneven, giving it a raw, textured feel. The artist used a technique called drypoint to create deep, jagged marks. This made the lines look almost like they were carved into the surface. Look up technique: etching, drypoint, aquatint to see how artists create these kinds of prints.
Alphonse Legros (French pronunciation: ; 8 May 1837 – 8 December 1911) was a French, later British, painter, etcher, sculptor, and medallist.
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