Devotion to Drawing: Eugène Delacroix

The Karen B. Cohen Collection

Exhibition Website

Jul 17 2018 - Nov 12 2018


Renowned as a giant of French Romantic painting, Eugène Delacroix (1798–1863) was equally a dedicated and innovative draftsman. Through a selection of more than one hundred works on paper—ranging from finished watercolors to sketchbooks, from copies after old master prints to preparatory drawings for important projects—this exhibition will explore the central role of drawing in Delacroix's practice.

The exhibition will celebrate a major gift to The Met from Karen B. Cohen, an Honorary Trustee and longtime supporter of the Museum, of her renowned collection of drawings by Delacroix. Assembled with an eye to the artist's process, the collection highlights how drawing shaped Delacroix's formation throughout his career; his application of the medium in the preparation of prints, paintings, and public decorative programs; and his investment in the expressive potential of his materials. As the first exhibition devoted to Delacroix's draftsmanship in North America in more than fifty years, it will introduce a new generation to the artist's works on paper.


Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website 
Image: Eugène Delacroix (French, 1798–1863). Three Arab Horsemen at an Encampment, 1832−37. Watercolor over graphite. 8 9/16 x 11 5/8 in. (21.7 x 29.6 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift from the Karen B. Cohen Collection of Eugène Delacroix, in honor of Alan Salz, 2015 (2015.713.3).

Whether you go or not, the exhibition catalog, Delacroix Drawings: The Karen B. Cohen Collection, showcases a selection of more than one hundred drawings, many of which have rarely been seen, from Karen B. Cohen's world-renowned collection.  This handsome book, one of the few to explore the topic in depth, provides new insight into Delacroix's drawing practice, paying particular attention to his methods and the ways in which he pushed the boundaries of the medium. The works highlighted here range from finished watercolors to sketches, from copies after old masters and popular prints to drawings preparatory to many of Delacroix's most important painting and print projects. Illustrated with a wealth of comparative images, the book examines the essential role of drawing in the artist's formation and aesthetic practice, while two shorter texts trace the history of the collecting of Delacroix's work at the Metropolitan Museum and present important new research on his materials and techniques.

Select Delacroix Drawings: The Karen B. Cohen Collection to learn more, or to place this book in your Amazon shopping cart.  Your Amazon purchase through this link supports ArtGeek with a small commission.

  • Works on Paper
  • European
  • 19th Century
  • Eugène Delacroix

Exhibition Venues & Dates