Study for Allegory of Faith and Silence
1500/95
Medium
Pen and black ink with brush and gray wash, with traces of red chalk, on tan laid paper, squared in black chalk, laid down on ivory wove card
Dimensions
26.8 × 22.5 cm (10 9/16 × 8 7/8 in.)
Classification
ink with wash
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
84988
Art Historical Context
Bartolomeo Cesi’s “Study for Allegory of Faith and Silence” offers a fascinating glimpse into the preparatory process of late-Renaissance drawing. Created around 1500/95, this modest sheet—measuring just over ten by eight inches—es as a working design for a larger composition. The presence of squaring in black chalk indicates that the artist intended to transfer and enlarge the image, a common practice when moving from paper to fresco or panel. Executed in pen and black ink with gray wash and delicate touches of red chalk, the drawing demonstrates Cesi’s command of line and tonal modeling. Th...