Putto Chasing Another Putto Carrying a Vase
n.d.
Medium
Pen and brown ink with brush and brown wash, over black chalk, on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
8.2 × 15.5 cm (3 1/4 × 6 1/8 in.)
Classification
ink or chalk wash
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
85407
Art Historical Context
In the spirited drawing *Putto Chasing Anotherto Carrying a Vase an unknown Italian artist captures a moment of playful mischief on a modest sheet of ivory laid paper, just 8.2 × 15.5 cm. Cherubic putti—those joyful, winged child figures emblematic of Italian art—frolic dynamically: one chases the other, who clutches a vase aloft, evoking themes of innocence and exuberance often seen in Renaissance and Baroque decorative schemes. Executed in pen and brown ink with brush and brown wash over black chalk, this work exemplifies the virtuoso techniques of Old Master draftsmen. The faint black chal...