Nativity with God the Father and angels
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
sheet: 8 1/16 x 15 3/4 in. (20.5 x 40 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011
Accession Number
2012.136.325
Tags
Art Historical Context
Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, known Il Genovese or Il Grechetto (1609–1664), was a masterful Italian Baroque artist from Genoa renowned for his dynamic compositions blending painting, drawing, and innovative printmaking. Created around 1647–50, *Nativity with God the and Angels* captures the sacred moment of Christ's birth, surrounded by divine figures in a luminous, ethereal scene. This etching reflects the Counter-Reformation era's emphasis on emotional religious devotion, where art served to inspire awe and faith amid turbulent times in 17th-century Italy. Etching allowed Castiglione to ...
About the Artist
Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione (Il Grechetto) · 1609–1664
Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, known as Il Grechetto, was baptized on March 23, 1609, in Genoa and died on May 5, 1664, in Mantua. Born into a large family, he collaborated closely with his brother Salvatore, an artist who shared his talents, and later taught his son Francesco, whose works were sometimes confused with his own. His parents placed him in the studio of Giovanni Battista Paggi, where...