St John in profile facing left, from "Christ and the Apostles"
ca. 1548–50
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
sheet: 8 11/16 x 4 1/2 in. (22 x 11.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1926
Accession Number
26.70.3(161)
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate etching by Andrea Schiavone (also known as Andrea Meldola) captures Saint John in profile, facing left, as part of the artist’s series “Christ and the Apostles.” Created around 1548–50, the print belongs to a group of images that present the central figures of the New Testament in elegant, elongated profiles. Schiavone, a Venetian draftsman and printmaker active during the late Renaissance, used the etching technique to achieve fine, fluid lines that emphasize the saint’s contemplative expression and flowing hair. The profile format, drawn from classical sources, lends the figur...
About the Artist
Andrea Schiavone (Andrea Meldola) · 1510–1563
Andrea Schiavone, born Andrea Meldolla around 1510 or 1515 in Zara (modern Zadar, Croatia), in Venetian-ruled Dalmatia, hailed from a family rooted in Meldola near Forlì in Romagna, Emilia-Romagna. His father, Simon Meldolla, served as a garrison commander there, and both parents originated from Meldola, where the family held property into the early 16th century. Nicknamed "Schiavone"—"the Slav"—a...