Male Nude with a Lion [verso]

The work Male Nude with a Lion [verso] by Albrecht Dürer is a highly important German drawing executed around 1500. Classified as a study, the piece utilizes pen and brown ink on laid paper, a common and efficient medium for preparatory sketches of the era. The designation [verso] indicates that the drawing is on the back side of the sheet, suggesting it may have been a rapid, working exploration of a complex pose or anatomical structure rather than a formalized final study.

Active during the critical span of 1401 to 1500, Dürer successfully synthesized the meticulous detail of Northern European tradition with the emerging anatomical and classical interests of the Italian Renaissance. This German artist was a crucial figure in establishing principles of human proportion north of the Alps. The drawing depicts a powerfully built male nude standing alongside a resting lion. The figure's idealized physique is rendered using assured, dynamic linework, capturing musculature and posture with a focus typical of Dürer’s commitment to achieving an idealized yet naturalistic human form. The technique emphasizes contours and volume through the careful application of the brown ink, giving the figures a sculptural presence even in this sketch format.

This detailed work offers invaluable insight into the prolific output of the German master, whose technical innovations profoundly influenced painting, drawing, and printmaking throughout Europe. While Dürer is perhaps best known for his copperplate prints, which are widely available today through public domain initiatives, unique drawings such as Male Nude with a Lion [verso] provide an intimate look at the artist's foundational process. The piece is preserved within the distinguished collection of drawings at the National Gallery of Art, offering essential material for scholars studying the transition of European artistic thought during the Northern Renaissance.