Job op de mesthoop

About this artwork

Aankoop uit het F.G. Waller-Fonds

Art Historical Context

This brush drawing by Domenico Tintoretto captures the biblical figure Job seated on a dung heap, a poignant moment of suffering and endurance drawn from the Old Testament. Created during Tintoretto’s lifetime (1570–1635), the compact work—measuring just 199 by 300 millimetres—reflects the intimate scale often chosen for preparatory studies or devotional images in late Renaissance Venice. As the son and collaborator of the celebrated Jacopo Tintoretto, Domenico continued the family workshop’s emphasis on dynamic figures and expressive lighting, here rendered with fluid brushwork that conveys both physical torment and quiet resilience. The drawing’s acquisition through the F.G. Waller Fund underscores its value within public collections, where such rare Venetian sheets offer visitors a direct glimpse into the working methods of one of the period’s most influential artistic dynasties. Though modest in size, the piece distils a profound human narrative into economical strokes, inviting contemplation of themes that resonated deeply in Counter-Reformation Europe.

About the Artist

Domenico Tintoretto · 1560–1635

Son and assistant of the famous Venetian painter, Jacopo Robusti, called Tintoretto. He is known primarily as a portrait painter, although Domenico executed other subjects as well. Comment on works: religious, mythology, Portraits