The Return of the Prodigal Son

c. 1640

Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called Guercino

Associated Names
Guercino

Artist, Bolognese, 1591 - 1666

The image is a line drawing depicting two full-body figures embracing. The person on the left appears to be an older man, with a long beard and flowing hair, wearing a robe that drapes around him. His facial features are somewhat obscured due to the beard. The person on the right has long, wavy hair and appears to be younger, wearing a simple, slightly ragged tunic and skirt, and is barefoot. Both figures are barefoot. They are positioned close together, with the younger figure leaning inward, seemingly pressing their faces together. The surroundings are minimalistic, with only a few lines suggesting a step or low platform, leaving a plain background that emphasizes the interaction between the two figures.

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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Private collection (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods Ltd., London, 9 December 1982, no. 45); (purchased by Richard Day Ltd., London); Mrs. Christian H. Aall, New York, 29 March 1983; (Davis and Langdale Company, Inc., New York, 1998); purchased 1998 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2007

  • Private Treasures: Four Centuries of European Master Drawings, The Morgan Library and Museum, New York, and National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2007

Bibliography

1991

  • Stone, David. "Supplement, Guercino Drawings in North American Collections, A Selective Checklist," in exh. cat. Guercino, Master Draftsman, Works from North American Collections, Harvard University and elsewhere, 1991: 225, no. 220 (plate L).

  • Turner, Nicholas, and Carol Plazzotta. Drawings by Guercino from British Collections. Exh. cat. British Museum, London, 1991: 154, under no. 127, fig. 20.

Inscriptions

lower right verso in graphite: 49

Watermarks

coat-of-arms (not identified)

Wikidata ID

Q64572430

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