3-035-781 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Study of the Model Joseph, about 1818-1819. Additional Info: This portrait was made as a study for Théodore Géricault's most famous painting, The Raft of the Medusa , made in 1819 and now in the Louvre. In a clear case of ineptitude, the ship named Medusa foundered in the sea off the coast of Africa in 1816. A raft with 140 passengers drifted for thirteen days before being rescued; only fifteen people survived. In preparation for his disturbing and controversial painting of the incident, Géricault made many studies from life, like this one, to achieve a sense of realism and specificity.