Currently not on view
Studies for Saint Sebastian,
ca. 1592–96
More Context
Handbook Entry
A major artist of the Counter-Reformation period, Federico Barocci produced altarpieces that in their theological clarity and atmospheric drama ushered in the Baroque naturalism of the Carracci and Caravaggio. As part of his labor-intensive preparatory process, Barocci drew his studio assistants from life in a variety of poses, selecting the most natural ones for the finished composition, while further refining the lighting and modeling. Together with eleven other life studies (including one in the Museum’s collection), this luminous sheet was made by Barocci in preparation for the heroically posed figure of Saint Sebastian in the <em>Crucifixion with the Mourning Virgin, Saint John, and Saint Sebastian</em> (Senarega Chapel, Genoa Cathedral). The pictorial harmony achieved by Barocci’s economical strokes in different colored chalks results in an organic ensemble that conveys materiality of form without sacrificing expressive beauty.
More About This Object
Information
ca. 1592–96
From Mongan, “Drawings in the Platt collection”: Preliminary studies for the figure of St. Sebastian in the “Crucifixion” of Genoa Cathedral. (See reference Bib. 4472);
From Scholz, “Italian drawings...”: same level as spectacular example in Metropolitan or Head of Lady at Smith. (See reference Bib. 4382);
Studies for Saint Sebastian: Male Nude Viewed from the Front, and Two Separate Studies of Right
- Agnes Mongan, "Drawings in the Platt Collection", American magazine of art 25, no. 1 (Jul., 1932): p. 47-54., p. 53
- Agnes Mongan, "Notes on drawings: Federigo Baroccio", Old master drawings 7, no. 25 (Jun., 1932): p. 5-6., p. 5-6; pl. 12, 13
- Harald Olsen, Federico Barocci: a critical study in Italian Cinquecento painting, (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell, 1955)., p. 153
- Jacob Bean, Italian drawings in the Art Museum, Princeton University; 106 selected examples, (New York: October House, 1966)., no. 70
- Janos Scholz, "Italian Drawings in the Art Museum of Princeton University," Burlington Magazine 109 no. 770 (May, 1967): p. 290-299., p. 294, figs. 28, 29
- Visions and revisions: [exhibition] Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, October 10- November 24 1968, (Providence: Museum of Art, Rhodes Island of Design, 1968)., p. 25, no. 9
- Felton Gibbons, Catalogue of Italian Drawings in The Art Museum, Princeton University, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1977).
- Edmund P. Pillsbury, The graphic art of Federico Barocci: selected drawings and prints, (New Haven, CT: Yale University Art Gallery, 1978)., cat. no. 61, p. 83; p. 84 (illus.)
- Andrea Emiliani, Federico Barocci (Urbino 1535-1612), (Bologna: Nuova Alfa Editoriale, 1985)., Vol. 2: p. 309; p. 312, fig. 662
- Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collection (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2007), p. 255 (illus.)
- Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collections (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Art Museum, 2013), p. 292
- 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. 213, cat. no. 92; p. 214 (illus.); p. 262, app. no. 101 (illus.)
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Exhibition of Drawings from the Collection of Dan Fellows Platt Loaned to the College Art Association, 1931 - 1932
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Italian Drawings in the Art Museum, Princeton University, October 14, 1966 - May 5, 1968
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An Educated Eye: The Princeton University Art Museum Collection (Friday, February 22, 2008 - Sunday, June 15, 2008)
