Old Woman Scolding a Man

1765

Johann Eleazar Schenau

Associated Names
Johann Eleazar Schenau

Artist, German, 1737 - 1806

The image shows three figures’ heads and shoulders in an intricate and detailed black-and-white sketch. The main figure on the left is a male face in profile with a prominent, rounded forehead, closed eyes, and long, loose hair that flows down under a hat. In the center, another male head appears with a slightly upturned nose and mouth. The third figure on the right, shown in a partial side profile, has exaggerated features with a long, hooked nose and a wide-open mouth as if shouting. The background is textured with lines and stippling. There are no notable jewelry or objects held by the characters.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Jacob Kainen Memorial Fund

  • Dimensions

    plate: 7.8 x 13.7 cm (3 1/16 x 5 3/8 in.)
    sheet: 8 x 13.9 cm (3 1/8 x 5 1/2 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2002.105.5

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Andresen 1864-1878, no. 4

  • Series Title

    Groups of Heads

Associated Artworks

See all 6 artworks
The image features an etching with two head-and-shoulders portraits drawn side-by-side. On the left is a woman in a slight profile facing right, with curly hair peeking out from beneath a cap. Her facial features are softly rendered, including delicate eyes, a small nose, and a gentle expression. She appears to be wearing a garment with a visible shoulder pattern and a string of beads or pearls around her neck. On the right is a man in three-quarter profile facing left, with a more intense expression, pronounced eyebrows, deep-set eyes, a broad nose, and a tightly closed mouth. He is wearing a cloth head covering wrapped around his head, with hair cascading over his shoulders. The background is plain with some unfinished sketch lines and subtle textural details, including a faint floral motif behind the woman, contributing to the classical style of the artwork.

Young Woman, Old Woman, and Man with Long Hair

Johann Eleazar Schenau

1765

Groups of Heads

Johann Eleazar Schenau

1765

Young Woman Flirting with a Man

Johann Eleazar Schenau

1765

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Paul Prouté S.A., Paris); purchased 2002 by NGA.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1864

  • Andresen, Andreas. _Der deutsche Peintre-Graveur, oder die deutschen Maler als Kupferstecher nach ihrem Leben und ihren Werken, von dem letzten Drittel des 16. Jahrhunderts bis zum Schluss des 18. Jahrhunderts, und in Anschluss an Bartsch's Peintre-Grave

Inscriptions

lower left in image: Das freundliche Weib / Schenau f. Sax:

Wikidata ID

Q76346118

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