From "Bizzarie di varie Figure"

1624

Giovanni Battista Bracelli

Associated Names
Giovanni Battista Bracelli

Artist, Italian, active c. 1624 - 1649

This is a drawing of two abstract humanoid figures made from various objects. Each figure is composed of assembled objects, resembling human forms with a whimsical and surreal quality. The figure on the left has a body shaped like a can, with geometric shapes indicating limbs and a shovel for one leg and another tool for its other leg. The figure on the right has scissors as legs and a bowl held in one hand, draped in a textured material simulating clothing. Both figures have square heads with simple facial features, contributing to the mechanical appearance. The background is plain, directing attention to the unique combinations forming these characters. The use of cross-hatching and etching gives depth and texture, enhancing the object's metallic and rigid feel.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    plate: 8.5 x 10.9 cm (3 3/8 x 4 5/16 in.)
    sheet: 11.2 x 15 cm (4 7/16 x 5 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1961.17.24

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Preaud 1975, no. A (series)

  • Series Title

    Bizzarie di varie Figure [1961.17.9-50]


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Baroness Burdett Coutts [1814-1906], London; (sale, Sotheby's, London, 15 May 1922, no. 67); Arthur Rau. Robert de Billy. Alain Brieux. Irving Davis, London. Hans P. Kraus, New York, July 14, 1954; Lessing J. Rosenwald, Jenkintown, September 1954; gift to NGA, 1961.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1965

  • Drolleries and Demons: Six Centuries of 'Fantastic' Prints, IBM Gallery, New York, NY, 1965.

1989

  • Italian Etchers of the Renaissance & Baroque, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; The Cleveland Museum of Art; and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.,1989, no. 117, repro.

Bibliography

1989

  • Reed, Sue Welsh and Richard Wallace. Italian Etchers of the Renaissance & Baroque. Musuem of Fine Arts, Boston, 1989: no.117.

Wikidata ID

Q65226221

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