Study of Hercules Resting, with Separate Studies of His Head and Foot (recto); Rectangular grid design (verso)
1595/97
Medium
Black chalk, heightened with white chalk, on blue laid paper
Dimensions
25.9 × 39.5 cm (10 1/4 × 15 9/16 in.)
Classification
drawings (visual works)
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
202162
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This is a highly finished study for a fresco mural of the same subject in the Palazzo Farnese in Rome. Hercules, the hero of Greek myth, is identified by his club, a lion’s hide, and the apple in his right hand. Though lifelike, the figure was not drawn from a live model but rather from statues available to the artist in Rome, especially an ancient Roman sculpture of a reclining river god. The blue paper creates a mid tone between the black and white chalks, granting Hercules a greater degree ...
About the Artist
Annibale Carracci · 1560–1609
Annibale was considered one of the greatest Italian painters of his age. His style is marked by naturalism combined with the formal language of Classicism in a grand and monumental style. Annibale was also instrumental in evolving the ideal, classical landscape and is generally credited with the invention of caricature. Italian painter. Comment on works: Mythology.