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The drawing depicts two full-bodied figures in the foreground. The figure on the right is a soldier, while the figure on the left is a person in a dress. The soldier's head is slightly tilted downward as he interacts with a flag or draped cloth. The person in a dress appears to be holding the opposite end of the flag or cloth. The soldier's facial features are obscured by shadow, and the person in a dress is drawn in profile. Text is handwritten across the top, pertaining to Marshal Pétain. The background includes rough sketches of additional figures and a distant group or crowd.
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The drawing depicts two full-bodied figures in the foreground. The figure on the right is a soldier, while the figure on the left is a person in a dress. The soldier's head is slightly tilted downward as he interacts with a flag or draped cloth. The person in a dress appears to be holding the opposite end of the flag or cloth. The soldier's facial features are obscured by shadow, and the person in a dress is drawn in profile. Text is handwritten across the top, pertaining to Marshal Pétain. The background includes rough sketches of additional figures and a distant group or crowd.

National Gallery of Art · Drawing

a) Le baiser du drapeau (recto); b) Study of Le baiser du drapeau (verso)

Jean-Louis Forain

Date
1918
Medium
a) black crayon on laid paper b) black crayon on laid paper
Dimensions
overall: 53 x 39.4 cm (20 7/8 x 15 1/2 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Accession number
1943.3.4044.a-b
Credit line
Rosenwald Collection
Time span
1901 to 1925
Department
CG-E
Original NGA record Wikidata

Subjects and terms

  • French
  • Impressionist
  • World War I
  • military
Provenance

Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], Jenkintown, PA; gift to NGA, 1943.

Inscription

"forain / x [illeg.] 1918" lower right margin, graphite, artist's hand. "OIREE MENNEE PAR / LE MARECHAL PETAIN / AUX/ MESSINS / ET / A SES SOLDATS" center composition, black crayon, artist's hand. "Le baiser au drapeau" lower right margin, graphite, unknown hand. "A 2349" lower right margin, graphite, unknown hand. "Le baiser au drapeau" verso, lower right sheet, graphite, unknown hand.

Marks

"LRJ" verso, black stamped ink, (Lugt 1760b). "National Gallery of Art" verso, black stamped ink, (Lugt 1932d).

Watermarks

None.

NGA object ID 7162. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.