Child's Head
Medium
Black chalk on blue gray laid paper, laid down on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
16.8 × 13.8 cm (6 5/8 × 5 7/16 in.)
Classification
graphite
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
82590
Art Historical Context
Behold the delicate *Child's Head*, a poignant drawing by Giovanni Battista Carolo, known as Battistello (1578–1635), a leading Neapolitan Baroque artist profoundly influenced by Caravaggio's tenebrism. Created around the early 17th centurydate unknown), this intimate study captures the tender features of a child with remarkable sensitivity, likely serving as a preparatory sketch for of Caracciolo's religious or genre paintings, where youthful innocence often symbolized purity and divine grace. Executed in black chalk on blue-gray laid paper—then mounted on ivory laid paper—this small gem (16...