The Opening Assembly of the Equestrian Ballet
Medium
Etching on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Image/plate: 29.3 × 44.3 cm (11 9/16 × 17 1/2 in.); Sheet: 39.2 × 54.2 cm (15 7/16 × 21 3/8 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
137053
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Influenced by the graphic work of Jacques Callot, a French artist working in Italy, Stefano della Bella was trained by a goldsmith, who taught him metalworking techniques for creating objects in miniature. This print records a festival held at the Pitti Palace by Ferdinando Tacca for Grand Duke Ferdinand II de’Medici. Over one thousand prints by della Bella’s hand are known, and this type marks the culmination of his career.
About the Artist
Stefano della Bella · 1610–1664
Stefano della Bella (1610-1664) was one of the most prolific and versatile printmakers of the Italian Baroque period, leaving behind 1,052 prints and several thousand drawings that captured the vivid essence of 17th-century European life. Born in Florence on May 18, 1610, to a family of artists, he trained initially as a goldsmith before studying painting under Cesare Dandini and etching under Rem...