Cherubs Floating on a Cloud
17th century
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
Diam.: 120.3 cm (47 3/8 in.); Framed: 128.3 × 128.3 × 5.1 cm (50 1/2 × 50 1/2 × 2 in.)
Classification
painting
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
60717
Art Historical Context
Nestled in the Art Institute of Chicago's Department of Painting and Sculpture of, *Cherubs Floating on a* is a delightful 17th-century Italian oil on canvas painting, presented in a grand tondo format with a diameter of 120.3 cm (47 3/8 in.). This circular composition, a hallmark of Italian Renaissance and Baroque art, the intimacy of a Renaissance medallion while embracing the exuberant energy of the Baroque era. The medium of oil on canvas allowed the anonymous Italian artist to achieve luminous skies, soft ethereal glows, and playful textures in the cherubs' plump forms and billowing cloud...
About the Artist
Italian
The designation "Italian" in art collections typically refers to an anonymous artist or a loose attribution to works from Italian schools, rather than a specific individual. With 173 known artworks in the museum's collection, this entry likely encompasses paintings by unidentified masters active across various periods, such as the Renaissance, Baroque, or later eras. Early life and personal detail...