Study of a Woman, ca. 1517–25
Red chalk
9 1/2 x 7 15/16 in. (24.2 x 20.1 cm)
Galleria degli Uffizi, Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe, Florence
Recto
Courtesy the Ministero dei beni e delle attività culturali e del turismo
Lauded as one of Andrea's most beautiful drawings, this study of a seated woman holding a book features soft handling of chalk at her face that is markedly different from the bold strokes demarcating her costume and hands, which are almost schematic. Blocks of shadow and framing lines visible on three sides show the artist working out the composition of a portrait. The drawing has been identified as a portrait of the artist's wife, relating to a fragmentary portrait in Berlin cropped above her voluminous sleeves.