Profile of Male Head, Crowned with Laurel Leaves
Medium
Red chalk heightened with touches of white chalk, on tan laid paper, laid down on cream laid paper
Dimensions
15.5 × 15.3 cm (6 1/8 × 6 1/16 in.)
Classification
chalk
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
82510
Art Historical Context
Francesco Solimena, a leading Neapolitan painter of the late Baroque period, created this intimate chalk study as a sensitive exploration of classical ideals. Active in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, Solimena was celebrated for his dramatic compositions and rich color, yet his drawings reveal a quieter mastery of form and expression. The laurel-crowned male profile evokes ancient Roman and Greek imagery, suggesting a poet, emperor, or perhaps Apollo himself—symbols of victory, wisdom, and artistic inspiration that resonated deeply in Baroque culture. Executed in red chal...
About the Artist
Francesco Solimena · 1657–1747
Comment on works: History; Religious