Head of a Putto
Medium
Brush and brown ink
Dimensions
sheet: 3 1/8 x 4 5/16 in. (8 x 11 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, François van den Broek d'Obrenan Gift, 2007
Accession Number
2007.420.2
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late Baroque era, Christoph Joseph Werner, an Austrian sculptor and draftsman active in Vienna, captured the playful essence of childhood in his delicate drawing *Head of a Putto* from 1690. This sheet, executed in brush and brown ink on modest 3 1/8 x 4 5/16 inches, exemplifies the preparatory sketches artists used for larger sculptures or frescoes. Putti—chubby, winged cherubs symbolizing innocence, love, divine joy—were staples of Baroque decoration, adorning churches, palaces, and gardens across Europe to evoke exuberance and movement. Werner's fluid brushwork brings the putto's ro...
About the Artist
Christoph Joseph Werner · 1670–1750
German, ca. 1670–1750 Dresden