Group of Figures Copied from Michelangelo's Last Judgment
1624–63
Medium
Pen and brown ink, over traces of black chalk; framing lines in pen and brown ink on mount
Dimensions
3-3/4 x 5-5/16 in. (9.5 x 13.5 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1880
Accession Number
80.3.67
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate drawing by Francesco Allegrini, 17th-century Italian from Gubbio, captures a dynamic *Group of Figures* copied from Michelangelo's monumental *Last Judgment* fresco in the Sistine. Created between 1624 and 1663, it exemplifies the enduring reverence for Michelangelo's Renaissance genius during the Baroque era, when artists meticulously studied and reproduced the master's muscular, expressive forms to hone their skills and spread his influence. Executed in pen and brown ink over faint traces of black chalk, framing lines on its mount, the work showcases Allegrini's precise techni...
About the Artist
Francesco Allegrini · 1615–1679
Francesco Allegrini (c. 1615/20–after 1679), born likely in Rome to the painter Flaminio Allegrini from Cantiano near Gubbio, emerged from a family of artists that included his sister, Anna Angelica Allegrini. He trained under Giuseppe Cesari, known as the Cavalier d’Arpino, around 1638–40, before entering the studio of Pietro da Cortona, whose dynamic Baroque style profoundly shaped his own. Elec...