6 - G. RUGENDAS (1666–1742), Nine Studies of Soldiers, circa 1700, Pencil

G. RUGENDAS (1666–1742), Nine Studies of Soldiers, circa 1700, Pencil Georg Philipp Rugendas (1666, Augsburg – 1742, ibid.): Nine Studies of Soldiers, c. 1700, pencil Technique: Pencil on paper Watermark: Partially visible. Indeterminate marks: Undeterminable watermark | Date: Inscription: Inscribed in the upper left by another person: “ax.” Date: c. 1700 Description: Georg Philipp Rugendas of Augsburg depicts nine soldiers in various poses and performing a variety of tasks, carefully arranged side by side in two rows of five and four soldiers. They stand with their legs apart, lean against a wall, or have their rifles slung over their shoulders. These are delicate graphite studies of remarkable presence, which derive their significance from the fact that they are studies from life. Rugendas, who in Augsburg—the city was occupied in 1703–04—directly experienced the military conflicts during the War of the Spanish Succession, observed soldiers at work in the various camps. Rugendas’ later biographer, Johann Caspar Füssli, reports that Rugendas “had the advantage” of “now seeing with his own eyes what had previously been merely idealized.”The sheet impressively illustrates that this is a prerequisite for what Füssli described as “the ideal,” which “gradually became an idea derived from the true visibility of nature.” The “true visibility of nature” is revealed in the studies Rugendas used to prepare his paintings: “He made a large number of regular drawings based on real examples, which he often incorporated into his paintings,” writes Füssli. The sheet belongs to a whole series of such “regular drawings” depicting soldiers, which are mainly held in the art collections of the city of Augsburg, but also in Nuremberg, Washington, and Sacramento. The Augsburg drawings are labeled “ax” in the upper left corner, suggesting that they were once part of the same collection—probably the artist’s estate. Our sheet also belongs to this group and is likewise labeled “ax” in the upper left corner. Rugendas used these sheets as a sort of reservoir of ideas for his battle scenes and depictions of soldiers’ lives; he drew upon them for elaborate drawings, prints, and paintings. For many of these studies, a connection to paintings and prints has been established—although this has yet to be proven for the sheet on offer. The regularity with which the soldiers are arranged on the sheet also suggests a graphic realization, which Rugendas had obviously already planned, but which was only undertaken by his great-grandson Johann Lorenz Rugendas the Younger at the beginning of the 19th century: In two series—*Etude des Attitudes et Postures de l’Homme* and *Zerschiedene Vorstellungen oder Actionen*—Rugendas presented a total of eleven of his great-grandfather’s sketch sheets as etchings. (Text: Peter Prange) Keywords: Soldiers, rifles, figure study, positions, emplacements, study sheet, 18th century, Baroque, Military, Germany, Size: Paper: 14.5 cm x 21.6 cm (5.7 x 8.5 in) Condition: Very good condition. Restored.