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Paul Cadmus

Male Nude, TS5, 1954

Now On View

Description

Maker

Title

Male Nude, TS5

Year

1954

Medium

Graphite and casein on tan paper

Materials/Techniques

Materials

Supports

Dimensions

Plate: 20 x 30.2 cm (7 7/8 x 11 7/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Original--pencil, LR:cadmus

Type

Credit

Museum purchase: Mary B. Jackson Fund and gift in memory of Courtland Roach by his friends

Object Number

1999.6.2

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Any distance between us

July 17, 2021 - March 13, 2022

Paul Cadmus made frank depictions of homoerotic content that were controversial during his lifetime. This intensely sexualized view of a male nude—the model Ted Starkowski, alluded to as TS in the title—reflects artistic skill Cadmus developed through classical training.

Changing Poses

November 12, 2010 - June 6, 2011

Beginning in the 1940s, Paul Cadmus produced numerous highly detailed studies of nude male bodies, including many drawings like this, which he considered to be finished works of art. His sitters were mostly professional models, in this case a New York model and hustler named Ted Starkowski (“TS” in the title). Though Cadmus admired the bodies of these men, he found that maintaining an emotional distance from his models invested his drawings with a powerful and productive psychic tension. That energy is present here in the model’s gaze, almost hidden by the shadow of his arm as he makes direct eye contact with the artist and with viewers. Cadmus’s lifelong commitment to slow, careful working methods and drawing from life demonstrate his profound respect for the academic tradition of figure drawing.

Recent Acquisitions

February 18 - April 16, 2000

Cadmus, like his contemporaries Reginald Marsh (1898-1954) and Edward Hopper (1882-1967), painted the American urban scene. Marsh and Hopper are well represented in the Museum's collection, but until the acquisition of this piece, Cadmus, a social realist with a satirical bite, was not; thus this purchase fills an important gap. The artist is known for his independent figure studies on toned paper. His short parallel strokes describe anatomy and musculature. Curatorial research and patience located the best available example of his works on paper. This drawing had been in the private collection of Lincoln Kirstein, Cadmus's brother-in-law and founding director of the New York City Ballet. The drawing entered the Museum's collection shortly before the artist's death in 1999.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in Copyright. This object is Male Nude, TS5 with the accession number of 1999.6.2. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.