192 - Profile of a woman leaning forward

Profile of a woman leaning forward Pencil on tracing paper 28 x 24 cm (view size) Monogrammed at the bottom right: MAUD This drawing is a preparatory study for the *Allegro* on the stage exedra of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, created in 1912. This exedra decoration accompanied the large frieze dedicated to The History of Music and Its Genres (Opera, Symphony, Lyric Drama, Greek Orchestral Music). Unlike the mounted canvases in the dome, the exedra element was destroyed or removed during the theater’s various transformations and renovations. Today, preparatory studies and sketches from this period remain (such as panel designs and charcoal drawings preserved in collections or museums), bearing witness to this monumental work commissioned from the painter for the theater’s inauguration. Sidebar Numerous vertical creases and, for the larger ones, slight diagonal creases Stains Provenance: Maurice Denis Collection Private collection