Two Grotesque Heads Facing One Another and Touching Tongues Within a Circle
1727
Medium
Pen and brown ink
Dimensions
sheet: 12 7/8 x 8 1/2 in. (32.7 x 21.6 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of János Scholz, 1960
Accession Number
60.541.6
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the heart of the 18th century, Italian artist Gaetano Piccini *Two Grotesque Heads One Another and Touchingues Within a Circle* 1727, a pen and brown ink drawing now housed in the Metropolitan Museum Art's Department of Drawings and Prints. 12⅞ × 8½ inches, sheet exemplifies the playful yet macabre tradition of *grotteschi*—fantastical, exaggerated figures inspired by ancient Roman decorations rediscovered during the Renaissance. Piccini's composition centers two monstrous heads locked in an intimate, tongue-touching embrace, enclosed within a circular frame that heightens their surreal int...