Joan of Arc Standing at the Altar at Reims Cathedral

Joan of Arc Standing at the Altar at Reims Cathedral is a significant drawing created by the master draftsman Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres in 1844. This work captures the celebrated French heroine, Joan of Arc, in a moment of solemn piety at the high altar of Reims Cathedral, the traditional site for the coronation of French kings. Classified as a drawing, this piece reflects Ingres’s enduring engagement with historical and mythological figures, which defined the Neoclassical movement during the 19th century.

The medium employed is precise and layered, utilizing pen and brown ink and graphite applied to tracing paper, which has then been carefully laid down onto blue paper. This complex technique allows Ingres to achieve subtle variations in tone and texture, utilizing the saturated blue background to enhance the sense of architectural weight and to make the delicate graphite lines pop forward. Although primarily renowned as a painter, Ingres was an unparalleled draftsman, viewing drawing not merely as a preparatory step but often as a finished composition in its own right. The rigorous delineation of Joan’s form and her clothing reveals the deep influence of the French academic tradition, characteristic of the 1826 to 1850 period.

Created late in the artist’s prolific career, the piece reflects the continued fascination within French culture with national historical figures, particularly those embodying faith and martial virtue. Ingres revisited the subject of Joan of Arc several times, underscoring its cultural importance in mid-19th-century France. Providing key insight into the artist’s process and mastery of line, this original work is preserved in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art. Due to its age and cultural significance, this drawing is typically considered part of the public domain, ensuring that high-quality study materials and prints of Ingres’s masterful draftsmanship are widely accessible to historians and enthusiasts.