Design for a Corner of a Ceiling
late 17th–early 18th century
Medium
Pen and brown ink over graphite
Dimensions
4 3/4 x 6 1/16 in. (12.1 x 15.4 cm)
Classification
Drawings|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1948
Accession Number
48.148(21)
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate drawing, *Design for a Corner of Ceiling*, hails from late 17th- to early 18th-century France, a golden age of lavish Baroque and emerging Rococo interiors. Created anonymously by a skilled draftsman—likely an architect or ornamental designer—it sketches an elegant corner motif destined for a grand ceiling. Such preparatory designs were essential for the opulent palaces and châteaux of the era, like those inspired by Versailles, where intricate decorations transformed vast spaces into symbols of royal splendor and cultural refinement. Executed in pen and brown ink over graphite ...