Saint Anthony of Padua Healing a Sick Man (recto); Partial Figural Studies Based on the Composition on the Recto (verso)

Art Historical Context

This exquisite double-sided drawing, created around 1590–1600 by the Florentine artists Santi di Tito his son Tiberio Titi, a miraculous moment from the life of Saint Anthony of Padua the beloved 13th-century Franciscan fri famed for his preaching and healings. On the recto, Saint Anthony gestures toward a sick man amid a bustling crowd of onlookers, their dynamic poses evoking the emotional intensity of Mannerist style—characterized by elongated figures, crowded compositions, and dramatic tension. This late Renaissance technique reflects Florence's artistic milieu during the Counter-Reformation, when religious imagery emphasized faith's transformative power. Executed in pen and light brown ink over black chalk on the recto (with some contour reworking), and black chalk alone on the verso, the sheet reveals the artists' preparatory process. The verso features partial figural studies echoing the main scene, showcasing how Renaissance draftsmen refined ideas through iteration. At just 5 9/16 x 7 3/8 inches, its intimate scale belies its technical sophistication, typical of workshop sketches that bridged painting and final works. Housed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department (gift of Mrs. John H. Wright, 1949), this piece offers a window into father-son collaboration and Mannerist draftsmanship, inviting visitors to appreciate the devotional fervor and skillful economy of line that defined Tuscan art at the cusp of the Baroque.

About the Artist

Santi di Tito|Tiberio Titi · 1536–1602

Italian painter. Comment on works: Portraits; Religious