Six Heads, a Turk in Front
1770s-1780s
Medium
etching on laid paper
Dimensions
sheet: 11 × 15.7 cm (4 5/16 × 6 3/16 in.) plate: 10.5 × 15.4 cm (4 1/8 × 6 1/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
Accession Number
1974.120.2
Art Historical Context
In the late 18th century, Italian artist Gaetano Gandolfi (1734–1802), a master of the Bolognese Rococo tradition, created *Six Heads, a Turk in Front*, an exquisite etching from the 1770s–1780s. Working in Bologna, Gandolfi was renowned for his lively figure studies and prints that captured human expression with fluid grace, bridging Rococo elegance and emerging Neoclassical restraint. This small-scale work, measuring just 10.5 × 15.4 cm on the plate, exemplifies his skill in rendering diverse faces with intricate detail. The composition features six overlapping heads, with a striking Turk p...
About the Artist
Gaetano Gandolfi · 1734–1802
Gaetano Gandolfi (1734–1802) was an Italian painter and draughtsman who, together with his older brother Ubaldo Gandolfi, represented the finest flowering of the Bolognese school during the eighteenth century. Born in San Matteo della Decima, he trained in Bologna under Felice Torelli and Ercole Lelli before entering the Accademia Clementina, the leading artistic institution in the city, where he ...