Paul Ehrenberg - Sleeping Boy, 1895

Paul Ehrenberg (1876–1949)

Sleeping Boy, 1895

Red chalk on paper
sheet 38 × 52 cm (14.96 × 20.47 inches)
framed 61 × 74 cm (24.02 × 29.13 inches)
signed and dated twice

Essay:
This red chalk drawing, executed in 1895, depicts a reclining male youth from two different viewpoints on a single sheet. Each pose presents the same model in a sleeping posture, rendered with delicate line work and subtle shading. The warm, rust-toned chalk – a medium traditionally favored for academic figure studies, lends the image a soft tonal quality and emphasizes the contours of the figure. Ehrenberg’s precise yet fluid draftsmanship is evident in the careful definition of the young man’s form and the naturalistic play of light across his body. Notably, the work is signed and dated twice, once below each figure, an unusual practice that suggests the artist considered each view a finished study in its own right.

Executed in 1895, when Ehrenberg was only nineteen years old, this study likely dates from his period of academic training at the Dresden Art Academy. As he was studying under instructors such as Leon Pohle and Friedrich Preller the Younger during this time, their influence is evident in the drawing’s solid academic technique and its emphasis on anatomical accuracy. Ehrenberg was born into an artistic family, the son of history painter Carl Ehrenberg, which likely contributed to his strong foundational drawing skills. Although he later became known for Impressionist portraits, still lifes, landscapes, and animal paintings, this early figure study highlights his classical training and keen observation of the human form. Viewed in the context of Ehrenberg’s oeuvre, Sleeping Boy serves as an intimate document of the artist’s formative years and his grounding in 19th-century academic art practice.