Solon H. Borglum, born Ogden, UT - Seated Nude - n.d. - T-Shirt

A seated nude figure bows her head over drawn-up knees, rendered in white chalk that emerges from a dark brown-black ground.

Visual Elements & Composition

The sheet is dominated by deep brown-black, which covers most of the field and leaves the figure largely in shadow. Chalk white traces the contours in fine, broken strokes, so the body is defined by its edges and a few lit planes along the back and limbs. Touches of warm rust red sit against the dark ground. The figure is shown in profile, long hair falling over the face and shoulders, arms wrapped around the legs, with knees and feet resting on a faint horizontal ledge at the base. A signature sits in the lower centre of the sheet, the only text in the composition.

Meaning & Symbolism

Solon Borglum (1868–1922), an American sculptor best known for animal and western subjects, trained in Paris in the 1880s. This drawing belongs to the figure study that underpinned his sculptural practice. Reversing the usual method of dark lines on light paper, he models form through light alone, which concentrates attention on silhouette and gesture. The bowed head and folded body give the figure a quality of withdrawal and weariness, and the isolated pose reads as a preparatory image rather than a narrative scene.

Printed on the Tee

A chalk drawing this quiet suits a close look. The figure's contours and soft shadows read best at chest height, where the eye settles on the bowed head and wrapped arms, and the dark ground frames the pose the way a sheet of paper once did in the studio. The design's focus on outline and gesture carries across the front of the shirt without needing extra detail around it.