Design for the Decoration of a Wall with Grotteschi in the Antique-Style
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over traces of black chalk or leadpoint, ruling and compass work; glued onto secondary paper support
Dimensions
9 3/8 x 5 1/2in. (23.8 x 14cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1880
Accession Number
80.3.580
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate drawing by Luzio Luzzi, also known as Luzio Romano, captures a detailed design for wall ornamentation in the grotesque style. Created in 1545, the sheet presents an elegant vertical composition filled with architectural niches, scrolling vines, fantastical creatures, and classical motifs arranged in symmetrical tiers. Such “grotteschi” drew direct inspiration from ancient Roman wall paintings rediscovered in the late fifteenth century, particularly those found in the subterranean chambers of Nero’s Domus Aurea. Luzzi worked in Rome during the height of the Mannerist period, when...