River Landscape with Two Mendicants and Other Figures
1709–84
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brush and gray wash. Traces of framing lines in pen and brown ink (?) along lower border
Dimensions
12-5/8 x 18-7/8 in. (32.1 x 47.9 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Harold K. Hochschild, 1940
Accession Number
40.91.15
Tags
Art Historical Context
Giuseppe Zais (170–1784), a Venetian landscape painter active during the Rococo period, created this delicate drawing as part of his exploration of the Italian countryside. Working in the of artists like Marco Ricci, Zais favored pastoral scenes that blended natural beauty with subtle human presence, reflecting the era’s growing appreciation for the picturesque qualities of rural life. Executed in pen and brown ink with gray wash, the work demonstrates Zais’s skill at capturing light, atmosphere, and depth with economical means. The fluid lines and soft tonal washes evoke a tranquil river val...