Figures on Balustrade
n.d.
Medium
Pen and brown ink, over graphite, on buff laid paper, laid down on buff laid paper
Dimensions
14.5 × 19.9 cm (5 3/4 × 7 7/8 in.)
Classification
pen and ink drawings
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
82595
Art Historical Context
Domenichino's *Figures on Balustr*, a delicate pen and brown ink drawing over graphite on buff laid paper, captures the artist's masterful command of the human form in a compact 14.5 × 19.9 cm study. Created by the 17th-century Italian Baroque Domenico Zampieri (1581–1641), a key figure in the Bolognese School and protégé of the Carracci brothers, this undated work likely served as a preparatory sketch. Domenichino's drawings, prized for their precision and vitality, often informed his grand frescoes and altarpieces in Rome and Bologna, blending classical poise with emerging Baroque dynamism. ...
About the Artist
Domenichino · 1581–1641
Domenichino was the son of a son of a successful shoemaker. He studied and worked with Ludovico Carracci's studio and under Annibale Carracci. From his frescoes and altarpieces, he was an influential exponent of the 17th-century classical style. Best known for landscapes and for sensitive depictions of facial expression and gestures.