Horsemen Hunting
1624–63
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash
Dimensions
2-11/16 x 4-15/16 in. (6.8 x 12.5 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1880
Accession Number
80.3.538
Tags
Art Historical Context
Francesco Allegrini created this lively drawing, *Horsemen Hunting*, sometime between 1624 and 1663. Executed in pen and brown ink with brown wash on a modest sheet measuring just under 5 by 3 inches, the work captures the energy of a chase. Riders on horseback, accompanied by dogs, surge across the page in pursuit of their quarry. The compact format suggests it may have served as a quick study or compositional idea rather than a finished presentation piece. Allegrini’s fluid linework and economical use of wash bring movement and depth to the scene with remarkable economy. The brown ink mediu...
About the Artist
Francesco Allegrini · 1615–1679
Francesco Allegrini (c. 1615/20–after 1679), born likely in Rome to the painter Flaminio Allegrini from Cantiano near Gubbio, emerged from a family of artists that included his sister, Anna Angelica Allegrini. He trained under Giuseppe Cesari, known as the Cavalier d’Arpino, around 1638–40, before entering the studio of Pietro da Cortona, whose dynamic Baroque style profoundly shaped his own. Elec...