Sleeping Nymph

That insistence on “real flesh” had the flavour of a conscious assertion when referred to sculptures such as the Florentine Venus and Lord Londonderry's Nymph. Admirable are the chiaroscuro transitions through which the surfaces become pulsating and transparent; firm is the structure of the images, not in the least courtly; vibrant and sensual the play of light: an extreme refinement, outwardly unassuming.