Standing Male Draped Figure With His Hands Raised

Art Historical Context

In the mid-16th century,ese artist Giovanni Paolo Lom created this dynamic drawing, *Standing Male Draped With His Hands Raised* (ca. 1565–71), capturing a dramatic pose that evokes ancient sculpture or theatrical gesture. Lomazzo, a Mannerist painter and influential art theorist influenced by Leonardo da Vinci, often explored anatomical expressiveness and contrapposto in his studies. This sheet exemplifies his skill in rendering the male form—elongated, muscular, and draped in flowing cloth—likely as a preparatory sketch for a larger painting or fresco. Executed on blue-green prepared paper, the work employs black chalk for precise contours, brush and brown wash for shadowy depth, and white gouache highlights to model form and illuminate raised hands against the tinted ground. This mixed-media technique, common in Renaissance workshops, heightened chiaroscuro effects, making figures appear three-dimensional and lifelike. The intimate scale (10 x 6 5/16 inches) invites close viewing, revealing Lomazzo's meticulous attention to fabric folds and gesture. Acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2004, this drawing offers a window into Mannerist draftsmanship during a transformative era in Italian art, bridging High Renaissance ideals with emerging Baroque drama. Visitors will appreciate its energy and the artist's theoretical legacy in treatises like *Trattato dell'arte della pittura*.