Cupid Tied to a Tree
1570/99
Medium
Pen and brown ink over traces of black chalk, on tan laid paper, laid down on ivory laid card
Dimensions
13.8 × 9.9 cm (5 7/16 × 3 15/16 in.)
Classification
pen and ink drawings
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
82280
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
Giorgio Picchi’s delicate drawing captures the mythological figure of Cupid bound to a tree, a subject rich in Renaissance symbolism. Created between 1570 and 1599, the small sheet reflects the period’s renewed fascination with classical themes, where love’s playful yet powerful force was often explored through lighthearted or moralizing imagery. Picchi, working in the late Italian Renaissance, used such intimate compositions to convey narrative drama on a miniature scale. The work is executed in pen and brown ink over faint black chalk lines on tan laid paper, a technique prized for its prec...
About the Artist
Giorgio Picchi · 1560–1605
Giorgio Picchi (c. 1555–1605), known as il Giovane, was born in Casteldurante (modern Urbania) into a family of renowned maiolica painters. His father, Angelo di Giorgio Picchi, and mother, Giacoma di Giulio Venanzi, ran a prominent workshop producing decorated ceramics, exposing young Giorgio to intricate mythological and biblical scenes that honed his drawing skills. After Michelangelo's death i...