The Fantastic Rocks and Castle at Bomarzo [recto]
c. 1625
![The Fantastic Rocks and Castle at Bomarzo [recto] by Bartholomeus Breenbergh](https://images.artheonmuseum.org/nga/thumb/the-fantastic-rocks-and-castle-at-bomarzo-recto-nga-65824.webp)
Medium
pen and brown ink with brown and gray wash over black chalk on laid paper
Dimensions
overall: 34.5 x 48.6 cm (13 9/16 x 19 1/8 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
Accession Number
1985.14.1.a
Art Historical Context
Bartholomeus Breen's *The Fantastic Rocks and Castle at Bomarzo [recto]*, created around 1625, captures the surreal landscape of the Sacro Bosco (Sacred Wood) at Bomarzo, Italy—a 16th-century Mannerist famed for its colossal, whimsical sculptures amid jagged rocks and a looming castle. Breenbergh a Dutch artist who spent much of the 1620s in Rome, was captivated by Italy's ancient ruins and natural wonders, blending them into his Italianate landscapes influenced by the Caravaggesque tradition. This intricate drawing, executed in pen and brown ink with brown and gray wash over black chalk on l...
About the Artist
Bartholomeus Breenbergh
Probably was apprenticed in Amsterdam. He was one of the early Dutch italianates, that is, northern artists who travelled to Italy in the 1620s and were inspired by southern landscapes. On his return, he settled in Amsterdam and his landscapes were developed as more severe and monumental, often with historical subjects; strongly influenced by the Pre-Rembrandtists. Comment on works: Landscapes; Ru...