Assembly of the Gods after the ceiling composition in the Loggia di Psiche, Villa Farnesina, Rome
Original title: Assembly of the Gods after the ceiling composition in the Loggia di Psiche, Villa Farnesina, Rome
kurzbeschreibung
Giovanni Jacopo Caraglio produced this engraving in 1527 after Raphael's ceiling fresco in the Villa Farnesina, which gathers the gods together. Printed in black and white, it is the first of two states.
Description
The figures press tightly together, set among clouds and haze. Dress and appearance vary sharply from one to the next: some wear armour, others go barefoot and are partly naked. Spears and shields are held aloft while bodies sit, stand or shift in motion. Overlapping forms thicken the layout still further.
Context
The print dates from 1527, the year of the Sack of Rome, and reproduces Raphael's fresco in the Loggia di Psiche of the Villa Farnesina. Caraglio, an Italian engraver, was known for his reproductive prints after works by Renaissance masters. Raphael had painted the fresco itself between 1517 and 1518 for the banker Agostino Chigi.
Impact
A dizzying abundance greets the viewer and draws them into the heavenly gathering. Muscular bodies and restless poses give the sheet a forceful, almost dramatic presence.
Technique
For the engraving, lines were cut into a metal plate and then printed onto paper. The monochrome rendering, lit evenly throughout, brings out the contours and the sculptural weight of the figures.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)