A Venetian Family Portrait Group
after 1750
Medium
Pen and brown ink, wash, heightened with white, on paper covered with brown wash
Dimensions
11 11/16 x 14 3/4 in. (29.7 x 37.5 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Robert Lehman Collection
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975
Accession Number
1975.1.386
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the opulent world of 18th-century, Pietro Antonio Novelli the warmth of domestic life in *A Venetian Family Portrait Group a lively drawing created after 1750. This intimate scene features a family—men, women, and—arranged in a tender group portrait, reflecting the era's emphasis on familial bonds and social status amid Venice's fading republic. Novelli, a versatile Venetian artist known for his Rococo flair, infuses the composition with elegant poses and expressive faces, evoking the city's vibrant theatricality. Executed in pen and brown ink with subtle brown wash, heightened with white ...
About the Artist
Pietro Antonio Novelli · 1729–1804
**Pietro Antonio Novelli (1729–1804)** Pietro Antonio Novelli, a prolific Venetian painter, draughtsman, and engraver, trained under the esteemed Jacopo Amigoni and in the studio of Giambattista Pittoni, absorbing influences from Gaspare Diziani and Francesco Guardi. In 1768, he gained membership in the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia with his reception piece, *Allegory of the Arts*. Early in ...