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Open 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

Visit
Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Admission is always free

6th and Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20565

Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights
Through September 5
Exhibitions & Events
America’s 250th

Celebrating American art and artists
Art & Artists
Open Call

Artists Reimagining the Collection
Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Vertigo (Le vertige)

1900

Albert Besnard

Associated Names

Albert Besnard

Artist, French, 1849 - 1934

This is a drawing of a skeleton in a grave with a startled figure above. The image depicts a skeleton in a grave under the earth. Above ground, a figure looks surprised or shocked with hands near the face. In the background, swirling patterns suggesting clouds or waves are visible. Lines are finely etched, creating contrast between the skeleton and the figure above, conveying a narrative of interaction between life and death.

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Artwork overview

Medium

etching on Van Gelder Zonen wove paper
Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Bell, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art
Dimensions

plate: 14 x 10.8 cm (5 1/2 x 4 1/4 in.)
sheet: 45.2 x 32 cm (17 13/16 x 12 5/8 in.)
Accession Number

1990.95.15
Catalogue Raisonné

Delteil, no. 145, State ii/ii

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Bell, Cambridge, MA; gift to NGA, 1990.

Associated Names

Professor and Mrs. Daniel Bell

Bibliography

1906

Delteil, Loys. Le peintre-graveur illustre. 31 vols. Paris: Published by the author, 1906-1926. Reprint. New York: Collectors Editions, Da Capo Press, 1969. Vol. 30 (Albert Besnard) is by Louis Godefroy.

Inscriptions

below platemark, center in graphite: ABesnard; lower right in plate: AB

Markings

None.

Watermarks

VAN GELD[ER ZONEN]

Wikidata ID

Q74885575

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