The Masked Comedian Playing a Guitar
c. 1622
Medium
etching and engraving on laid paper
Dimensions
sheet (trimmed within plate mark): 6.3 × 7.5 cm (2 1/2 × 2 15/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
R.L. Baumfeld Collection
Accession Number
1969.15.445
Art Historical Context
Jacques Callot's *The Masked Comedian a Guitar* (c. 1622) captures the lively spirit of 17th-century European theater in a remarkably compact etching and engraving on laid paper, measuring just 6. × 7.5 cm This intimate print from National Gallery of Art's R.L. Baumfeld Collection depicts a masked performer strumming a guitar, evoking the exaggerated gestures and vibrant costumes of commedia dell'arte—a popular form of Italian improvised comedy that enchanted courts across Europe. Callot, a masterful Baroque printmaker active in Florence and Lorraine, excelled at rendering dynamic scenes with...
About the Artist
Jacques Callot · 1592–1635
Jacques Callot (1592–1635) was a French printmaker and draftsman from the Duchy of Lorraine, widely regarded as one of the first great artists to practice the graphic arts exclusively. His more than 1,400 etchings chronicled the breadth of 17th-century life, from Medici court festivities to the brutal realities of warfare. Callot revolutionized etching through technical innovations including the é...