Head of a Man Looking Up

1770s

Pietro Antonio Novelli

Associated Names
Pietro Antonio Novelli

Artist, Venetian, 1729 - 1804

The image shows a sketch of a person's head and part of the shoulders. The face is turned upwards in a slightly diagonal and upward-right angle, with expressive lines defining features such as brows and a nose. The person's hair is depicted as wavy and voluminous, flowing outward. Minimal lines suggest clothing over the shoulders. There are no visible jewelry or objects held. The background features a plain, textured surface with crosshatching and sweeping lines for depth.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Einar Perman, Stockholm; Herbert List [1903-1975], Munich (Lugt 4063); Ursula and Adolf Ratjen, Vaduz, for Wolfgang Ratjen; Wolfgang Ratjen [1943-1997], Vaduz and Munich; purchased 2007 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1977

  • Stiftung Ratjen. Italienische Zeichnungen des 16. - 18. Jahrhunderts, Graphische Sammlung, Munich; Staatliche Museen Preussischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin; Kunsthalle, Hamburg; Kunstmuseum, Dusseldorf; Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, Munich, 1977, 228, no. 105 (entry by Peter Dreyer).

1979

  • Zeichnungen italienischer Meister aus den Sammlungen Schloss Fachsenfeld, Stiftung Ratjen Vaduz, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Staatliche Graphische Sammlung München. Kunstmuseum Lucerne, 1979, 60, no. 106.

2011

  • Italian Master Drawings from the Wolfgang Ratjen Collection, 1525-1835, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2011, no. 59.

2014

  • The Poetry of Light - La poesia della luce: Venetian Drawings from the National Gallery of Art, Museo Correr, Venice, Venice, 2014 - 2015, no. 106.

Bibliography

1977

  • Stiftung Ratjen. Italienische Zeichnungen des 16. - 18. Jahrhunderts. Munich, 1977: 228-229.

2011

  • Italian Drawings from the Wolfgang Ratjen Collection 1525-1835. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2011: 136-137.

Watermarks

rearing unicorn (not in Briquet, Heawood or Churchill)

Wikidata ID

Q64619668

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