Study of the head of Christ on the Cross, probably ca. 1935

Sir Frank Brangwyn RA (1867 - 1956)

RA Collection: Art

A study of the head of Christ on the cross. In this drawing, Brangwyn chose a striking close-up view and produced vivid effects by contrasting the red chalk with white highlights and the blue paper. Christ's arms are shown stretched out on the arms of the cross while his head hangs forward with bedraggled hair, mouth gaping and eyes looking into the distance. A few strokes of white chalk create a broad halo around his head. Part of the sheet is lightly squared up, suggesting that this was intended as a study for a work on a larger or smaller scale.

This drawing has been identified by Brangwyn expert Libby Horner as a study for the Twelfth Station of the Cross ('Jesus Dies on the Cross') in Brangwyn's 1935 lithograph series. Brangwyn first started working on Stations of the Cross subjects when he was commissioned to produce a set for Arras Cathedral just after the First World War. Although the Arras project was never finished, he returned to this subject throughout his life, producing two series in print and several in paintings.