A woman in profile pulling back on a rope tied around the horns of a young bull

Art Historical Context

In this delicate etching from around 1660, Stefano della Bella captures a poised woman in strict profile, exerting control as she pulls back on a rope looped around the horns of a young bull. The first state of two impressions, this print showcases the raw intricacy of the artist's preliminary lines before any revisions, offering a rare glimpse into his creative process. Della Bella, a masterful 17th-century Italian printmaker associated with the Baroque era, was renowned for his fluid etchings that blended meticulous detail with atmospheric depth, often drawing from everyday life, mythology, and pastoral scenes. Etching allowed Della Bella to achieve fine, expressive lines using acid to bite into a metal plate, a technique he perfected during his time in Florence and Paris, where he worked for patrons like the Medici family and Cardinal Richelieu. Here, the profile view—echoed in the tags of profiles, women, and bulls—emphasizes form and tension, highlighting the woman's strength and the bull's restrained power, evoking themes of human dominance over nature. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department through the 2011 bequest of Phyllis Massar, this 6 5/16 x 5 7/8-inch sheet exemplifies Della Bella's influence on printmaking, bridging Italian draftsmanship with Northern European precision during a golden age of reproductive art. Visitors will appreciate its subtle storytelling and technical virtuosity.

About the Artist

Stefano della Bella · 1610–1664

Stefano della Bella (1610-1664) was one of the most prolific and versatile printmakers of the Italian Baroque period, leaving behind 1,052 prints and several thousand drawings that captured the vivid essence of 17th-century European life. Born in Florence on May 18, 1610, to a family of artists, he trained initially as a goldsmith before studying painting under Cesare Dandini and etching under Rem...