Cupid with Youth and Luxury
1612
Medium
Chiaroscuro woodcut from two blocks, with letterpress text, on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Sheet: 23.7 × 29.2 cm (9 3/8 × 11 1/2 in.)
Classification
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
268361
Art Historical Context
**Cupid with Youth and** (1612) is a striking chiaroscuro woodcut Paulus Moreelse, a Dutch artist from Utrecht active during the early Baroque period. Moreelse, known for his elegant portraits and genre scenes influenced by Caravaggio's dramatic lighting, here ventures into printmaking to explore allegorical themes. The image likely personifies Cupid alongside figures of Youth and Luxury, evoking moral reflections on fleeting pleasures—a common motif in Northern European art amid the Dutch Golden Age's prosperity and introspection. This work exemplifies the chiaroscuro woodcut technique, usin...
About the Artist
Paulus Moreelse
Comment on works: Architecture; Landscapes; Portraits; History