Bust of woman with wide-open mouth and long curly hair falling over her shoulders, wearing low-cut dress with ribbon round her waist, in profile to left

Art Historical Context

This delicate etching, titled *Bust of Woman with Wide-Open Mouth Long Curly Hair*, captures a striking profile portrait attributed to Leonardo da Vinci as the original design, faithfully reproduced by the masterful Bohemian etcher Wenceslaus Hollar in1665. The woman gazes leftward, her mouth agape in an expressive gesture—perhaps mid-song or exclamation—framed by cascading curls tumbling over her shoulders and a low-cut dress cinched with a ribbon at the waist. Measuring just 2⅝ × 1⅞ inches, this intimate "only state" print exemplifies the precision of 17th-century reproductive engraving. Hollar (1607–1677), renowned for his meticulous depictions of old master drawings, bridged Renaissance ingenuity with Baroque technical virtuosity. Working in etching—a process involving acid biting into a metal plate to create fine lines—he preserved Leonardo's anatomical sensitivity and emotional depth, likely from a lost da Vinci study. Produced during Hollar's prolific London period, it reflects the era's fascination with classical beauty and the growing market for affordable prints of masterpieces. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department (Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1917), this work highlights women's portrayal in art as both idealized muses and vividly human figures. Its small scale invites close contemplation, revealing Hollar's genius in translating Leonardo's sfumato-like softness into etched lines—a testament to art's enduring power to connect across centuries.

About the Artist

Leonardo da Vinci|Wenceslaus Hollar · 1452–1519

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) stands as the quintessential Renaissance polymath, whose genius spanned painting, sculpture, architecture, science, mathematics, engineering, anatomy, geology, cartography, botany, and writing. Born in Vinci, Italy, as the illegitimate son of a notary, Leonardo received limited formal education but demonstrated extraordinary artistic talent from an early age. His appr...