Italy / c. 1560s
Cupid Drawing His Bow
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Cupid Drawing His Bow as drawing (Italy · c. 1560s).
The grid of squares drawn over this figure was used by the artist or his workshop to transfer the composition to a larger format.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this drawing as black chalk with pastel (stumped in places), heightened with white chalk, squared with black chalk; framing lines in graphite and credits Federico Barocci (Italian, 1528–1612).
The museum's collection notes: This drawing formed part of the painter Federico Barocci's painstaking working method, which began with studies from nature, included sculpted models in wax, and concluded with full-scale cartoons in color. A detailed figure study such as this would have followed numerous compositional and life studies in preparation for the final cartoon. The squares drawn over the figure indicate it was meant to be transferred to a larger format. Barocci may have made this drawing as a preparatory study for his large altarpiece depicting the Martyrdom of St. Sebastian intended for the Bonaventura Chapel in the Urbino cathedral. The legs of the putto were us
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtCupid Drawing His BowOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.