Nielsen, born in Denmark, was the son of two actors. He studied painting in Paris from 1906 to 1911 at the Académie Julian and Académie Colarossi, during which time he began to illustrate contemporary literature. His illustration became so successful that it became the defining aspect of his career, and in 1910 he was invited to exhibit at Dowdeswell & Dowdeswells in London, where he moved shortly afterwards.
His drawings show a fascination with the melancholy and macabre, and have an intensity of emotion which let to contemporary comparisons with Aubrey Beardsley (1872-1898) and Carlos Schwabe (1866-1926).
Following his first exhibition, Nielsen was commissioned by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch to illustrate In Powder and Crinoline, a compilation of rewritten French fairytales, published in 1913 alongside a selling exhibition of Nielsen's illustrations. 26 colour illustrations were included in the Limited Edition, and 24 in the standard edition. Nielsen insisted on a four-colour printing process, in contrast to the three-colour process typically used by his contemporaries. The present drawing relates to this project, and illustrates an episode from Minon-Minette.