Study of a Nude (Etude de nu)

Study of a Nude (Etude de nu) by Georges Braque is an important early example of the artist’s rigorous engagement with structural form and reductive line work, executed in 1907. This piece, classified as a print, utilizes the exacting technique of etching, allowing Braque to focus intensely on the essential contours and mass of the human figure. The medium strips away the distraction of color characteristic of his previous Fauvist output, forcing a foundational examination of shape and volume. The decision to render the subject matter as a nude study reflects the modernist emphasis on foundational elements of art, drawing heavily on post-impressionist structures.

Created during the pivotal period between 1907 and 1908, this French work documents Braque’s dramatic shift away from established pictorial norms toward a revolutionary new aesthetic. During this time, the artist was absorbing key influences, primarily the flattened planes and geometric rigor found in Paul Cézanne's late bather paintings and the raw formal power of African and Iberian sculpture. Braque treats the body not merely as a traditional or sensual subject, but as a series of interlocking, abstracted volumes, anticipating the language that would soon define Analytical Cubism. The figure is angular, monumental, and generalized, demonstrating the artist’s emerging interest in reducing the perceived world into elemental, repeatable shapes.

The sparse, powerful lines of this seminal print confirm Braque’s rapidly emerging role as a leader of the Parisian avant-garde. This early investigation into volumetric form and linear structure is essential viewing for understanding the foundations of 20th-century modernism. The work resides within the prestigious collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Although the original etching is highly valued, high-quality copies of this 1907-1908 French study are now widely accessible, often available through public domain initiatives for researchers and enthusiasts of early modern prints.