Deux études de bras

This sheet is a preparatory study for Le Martyre de saint Étienne, painted by Eugène Delacroix in 1853 and exhibited at the Salon of the same year.

Concentrating exclusively on the articulation of the arms and hands, Delacroix isolates gesture from the complete figure in order to resolve movement, weight and expressive tension before transferring them to the finished composition.

The drawing offers a particularly direct insight into Delacroix’s working process. With an economy of means, the artist studies the position and interaction of the limbs independently from the surrounding narrative, reducing the composition to gesture and physical expression.

The Louvre preserves several other preparatory drawings related to Le Martyre de saint Étienne, documenting the extensive graphic research behind the final painting.