Neptune
Medium
Black and red chalk, heightened with white chalk, on tan laid paper
Dimensions
32 × 22.1 cm (12 5/8 × 8 3/4 in.)
Classification
chalk
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
84268
Art Historical Context
Behold *Neptune*, an exquisite drawing by Flemish Baroque artist Theodoor Thulden (1606–1669), now housed in the Art Institute of's Prints and Drawings Department. Van Thulden, a collaborator of Peter Paul Rubens, excelled in capturing the mythological grandeur of classical figures like Neptune, the Roman god of the sea This undated study (n.d.) exemplifies the dramatic energy of 17th-century Flemish art, where gods and heroes embodied power and movement amid the era's fascination with antiquity revived through humanism and Catholic Counter-Reformation iconography. Crafted on tan laid paper m...