Currently not on view
Study for the Fall of the Giants,
ca. 1528–33
One of Raphael’s most gifted followers, Perino del Vaga spent a decade in Genoa, where he decorated the chief residence of Prince Andrea Doria. One of the centerpieces was the ceiling fresco Fall of the Giants; this drawing represents the only visual evidence for the evolution of its influential design. The fresco depicts a scene from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, in which Jupiter punishes the rebellious giants, hurling a thunderbolt down upon them after their attempt to destroy Mount Olympus with boulders. While the overall design has been established, the artist has not yet clearly separated the victors from the vanquished, and most of the gods and goddesses in the upper portion are difficult to distinguish.
Information
ca. 1528–33
Mr. and Mrs. S. S. Schwartz, Larchmont, New York; Lucien Goldschmidt, Inc., New York; purchased by the Art Museum, 1977;
From Davidson, “Drawings by Perino del Vaga...”: Formerly in the collection of Mr. and Mrs. S. S. Schwarz, Larchmont, New York. (See reference Bib. 4748);
- Bernice Davidson, "Drawings by Perino del Vaga for the Palazzo Doria, Genoa", Art bulletin 41, no. 4 (Dec., 1959): p. 315-326., p. 321-322; fig. 15
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1977," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 37, no. 1 (1978): p. 28-40., p. 38
- Elena Parma Armani, Perin del Vaga: l’anello mancante: studi sul manierismo, (Genova: Sagep, 1986)., p. 119, 122, p. 151 (note 91), p. 273; p. 110, fig. 121
- Elena Parma et al., Perino del Vaga: tra Raffaello e Michelangelo (Milano: Electa, 2001)., cat. no. 103; p. 211 (illus.)
- Laura Giles, Lia Markey, Claire Van Cleave, et. al., Italian Master Drawings from the Princeton University Art Museum, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Art Museum, 2014)., p. 44, cat. no. 17; p. 45 (illus.); p. 46 (verso illus.); p. 257-258, app. no. 86; p. 258 (illus.)
