Four Male Heads
c. 1534
Medium
pen and brown ink on laid paper
Dimensions
sheet: 35.56 × 26.99 cm (14 × 10 5/8 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Patrons' Permanent Fund
Accession Number
2022.159.1
Art Historical Context
Baccio Bandinelli’s *Four Male Heads* (c. 1534) offers a fascinating glimpse into the working methods of a leading Florentine artist of the Mannerist period. A sculptor and draftsman closely associated with the Medici court, Bandinelli often used drawings to explore expressive facial types and anatomical details for his ambitious marble projects. This sheet, executed in pen and brown ink, captures four distinct male visages—each rendered with vigorous, economical strokes that convey both volume and character. The choice of medium is significant: laid paper and iron-gall ink allowed Bandinelli...
About the Artist
Baccio Bandinelli · 1493–1560
Bandinelli was the son of Michelangelo de'Brandini, a successful Florentine goldsmith. Baccio was a loyal subject of the Medici, even when they were in exile 1494-1513; consequently he was rewarded by receiving commissions after the elections to the papacy of Leo X (Giovanni de' Medici) and Clement VII (Giulio de' Medici), and after Cosimo de' Medici became Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1537. His polit...