Head of a Man in Profile to Right

Art Historical Context

This intimate drawing by Parmigianino captures the profile of a man with remarkable economy and grace. Created during the artist’s lifetime (1503–40), the work exemplifies the refined draftsmanship of the Italian Mannerist period. Parmigianino, celebrated for his elegant distortions of form and fluid line, often explored the human head in quick studies that reveal both observation and idealization. Executed in pen and brown ink over black chalk on a tiny sheet measuring just over two inches, the drawing demonstrates how Renaissance artists used such modest media to experiment with light, contour, and expression. The profile format, popular in classical and Renaissance portraiture, allowed Parmigianino to emphasize silhouette and subtle modeling with minimal strokes. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Department of Drawings and Prints, this delicate sheet offers visitors a glimpse into the private working methods of one of the sixteenth century’s most poetic draftsmen. Its small scale invites close looking, rewarding viewers with the quiet intensity of a single, fleeting likeness.

About the Artist

Parmigianino (Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola) · 1503–1540

Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola, known as Parmigianino, was born on January 11, 1503, in Parma, into a family of artists. The eighth child of painter Filippo Mazzola and Donatella Abbati, he lost his father to the plague at age two and was raised by his uncles, Michele and Pier Ilario Mazzola, modestly talented painters who taught him the techniques of the craft. By his late teens, Parmigianino d...