David with the head of Goliath
| Reference: | S46691 |
| Author | Giuseppe CALETTI |
| Year: | 1620 ca. |
| Measures: | 155 x 257 mm |
€1,750.00
| Reference: | S46691 |
| Author | Giuseppe CALETTI |
| Year: | 1620 ca. |
| Measures: | 155 x 257 mm |
€1,750.00
Description
David carrying the head of Goliath which he holds by the hair.
Etching, circa 1620/30, lettered in the bottom margin with a dedication to Ascanio Spineda by Catarin Doino, and with 'in Ferrara con licenza di superiori'.
“This is the largest of three etchings by Caletti which represent the story of David and Goliath. It is imbued with a warm sense of the humanity of the small hero. A favorite subject of the artist in paintings as well as prints, David exemplifies the power of human resources, the victory of man over his enemy's greater physical powers through strength of mind and determination.
Here David is depicted as a stocky youth, knees bent under the effort of carrying the outsize head of Goliath, which he grasps by the hair with both hands. The giant's huge sword is nearly the height of the victor, who clutches it under his arm. In the distance appears a walled city, repeated with variations in several other prints, and perhaps a reference to Cremona with its tall medieval towers. In keeping with his fondness for primitive narrative painting, the artist depicted the hero a second time in this print, presenting his trophy at the city gates.
Caletti used short, feathery strokes of the needle to create the image. He lavished attention on the depiction of human hair and the fringes of David's boots. These were described with fine, curving parallel lines, a draw- ing mode that was carried out less convincingly in the shading and modeling of flesh, drapery, and sword. Stipple was modestly used. All forms in this etching lack continuous contours or hard edges and instead are soft and painterly.
The light touch and luminous quality of the print, with the white of the paper always visible between the lines, call to mind Venetian aesthetics, while the feath- ery form of the strokes and the lack of firm contours strongly evoke Guercino's masterful drawings, which must have been an inspiration for, and exercised a beneficial influence on, the less sophisticated Caletti. The print is dedicated to Ascanio Spineda by Caterino Doino, a Venetian-born etcher and publisher who settled in Ferrara well before 1640 and whose own etchings have been confused with Caletti's” (cf. Sue Welsh Reed in “Italian Etchers of the Renaissance & Barocque” pp. 139-140).
A little-known, minor painter whose biography is incomplete, Giuseppe Caletti was active in Ferrara from about 1630 until his death in 1660. He is considered one of the painters of that city, although some of his prints were signed "Ioseffo Cremonesi" implying that Cremona was the city of his birth. His best work is dated in the 1630s, when he was strongly influenced by Guercino.
Caletti made about twenty etchings in a delightfully personal and easily recognizable style. The feathery draftsmanship of these prints and of his drawings closely resembles that of his far greater contemporary, Guercino, who came from Cento, not far from Ferrara. The artist's harsh subject matter sometimes seems in conflict with his luminous, painterly style and innocent mood. A commonly depicted theme is the story of David and Goliath; a nineteenth-century historian of Ferrara stated that he had seen more than thirty paintings of the subject. There is not one Madonna and Child among Caletti's etchings, but Old Testament subjects representing the theme of undoing are seen frequently in such prints as Samson and Delilah (Bartsch 4), Judith with the Head of Holofernes, and three versions of David with the Head of Goliath.
Good impressions of his etchings are rare, since the plates were usually lightly bitten, contained few true darks, and were often printed a bit dryly. Caletti's etchings resemble little sketches in pen and ink, and the artist's involvement with the act of drawing is borne out by a series of plates intended to serve as models for drawing instruction. In their directness, humanity, and gentle humor, Caletti's etchings remain appealing and accessibile to this days.
Good impression, printed on contemporary laid paper, trimmed to the copperplate or with very small margins, in good condition.
Bibliografia
Sue Welsh Reed in “Italian Etchers of the Renaissance & Barocque” pp. 139-140, n. 68; Le Blanc C., Manuel de L'amateur D'estampes, 3, V 0001 P 00563, 1854-59; Nagler G.K., Neues Allgemeines Künstler-Lexikon, V 0002 P 00287, 1835-52; The Illustrated Bartsch, 3, V 0044 P 00343, 1978-1983.
Giuseppe CALETTI (Cremona 1595 – Ferrara 1660)
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A little-known, minor painter whose biography is incomplete, Giuseppe Caletti was active in Ferrara from about 1630 until his death in 1660. He is considered one of the painters of that city, although some of his prints were signed "Ioseffo Cremonesi" implying that Cremona was the city of his birth. His best work is dated in the 1630s, when he was strongly influenced by Guercino.
In its golden colors, luminosity, and soft brush strokes, Caletti's painting style reflects his admiration for sixteenth-century Venetian painters. He displays his nostalgia for the past in small, romantically costumed figures, often placed in naturalistic landscape settings. A narrative cycle of the story of John the Baptist, paint- ed on seventeen small horizontal panels, matches work of the early Renaissance in feeling, recalling fifteenth- century predella panels. The straightforward approach to his subjects and their dreamy, contemplative qualities also connect Caletti to the Venetian past. In modern times his paintings have been attributed to Titian, Giorgione, and Dosso Dossi, and it seems likely that in his own time his work was intentionally presented as theirs, made for an antiquarian market that arose to meet the demands of collectors of early Venetian painting.
Caletti made about twenty etchings in a delightfully personal and easily recognizable style. The feathery draftsmanship of these prints and of his drawings closely resembles that of his far greater contemporary, Guercino, who came from Cento, not far from Ferrara. Paintings by Caletti have also been mistaken for Guercino's.
The artist's harsh subject matter sometimes seems in conflict with his luminous, painterly style and innocent mood. A commonly depicted theme is the story of David and Goliath; a nineteenth-century historian of Ferrara stated that he had seen more than thirty paintings of the subject. There is not one Madonna and Child among Caletti's etchings, but Old Testament subjects representing the theme of undoing are seen frequently in such prints as Samson and Delilah (Bartsch 4), Judith with the Head of Holofernes, and three versions of David with the Head of Goliath. One of Caletti's more common prints is the plague-infected Saint Roch. Genre subjects include a demure, female nude bather glimpsed from behind; a short-bearded young man gazing out from behind a large beret (perhaps a self- portrait); and a shovel-brimmed hat all but hiding a face.
Caletti provided landscape settings for his figures which were economical but artful: a well-drawn tree, a cloud with an interesting shape, a group of towers, or a building reflected on the surface of a lake or river. He was also a painter of landscapes.
Good impressions of his etchings are rare, since the plates were usually lightly bitten, contained few true darks, and were often printed a bit dryly. Saint Roch was an exception and printed strongly even in its later state, where the saint's name was boldly engraved at the bottom, giving the print the appearance of a popular devotional image. Caletti's etchings resemble little sketches in pen and ink, and the artist's involvement with the act of drawing is borne out by a series of plates intended to serve as models for drawing instruction. In their directness, humanity, and gentle humor, Caletti's etchings remain appealing and accessibile to this days.
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Giuseppe CALETTI (Cremona 1595 – Ferrara 1660)
|
A little-known, minor painter whose biography is incomplete, Giuseppe Caletti was active in Ferrara from about 1630 until his death in 1660. He is considered one of the painters of that city, although some of his prints were signed "Ioseffo Cremonesi" implying that Cremona was the city of his birth. His best work is dated in the 1630s, when he was strongly influenced by Guercino.
In its golden colors, luminosity, and soft brush strokes, Caletti's painting style reflects his admiration for sixteenth-century Venetian painters. He displays his nostalgia for the past in small, romantically costumed figures, often placed in naturalistic landscape settings. A narrative cycle of the story of John the Baptist, paint- ed on seventeen small horizontal panels, matches work of the early Renaissance in feeling, recalling fifteenth- century predella panels. The straightforward approach to his subjects and their dreamy, contemplative qualities also connect Caletti to the Venetian past. In modern times his paintings have been attributed to Titian, Giorgione, and Dosso Dossi, and it seems likely that in his own time his work was intentionally presented as theirs, made for an antiquarian market that arose to meet the demands of collectors of early Venetian painting.
Caletti made about twenty etchings in a delightfully personal and easily recognizable style. The feathery draftsmanship of these prints and of his drawings closely resembles that of his far greater contemporary, Guercino, who came from Cento, not far from Ferrara. Paintings by Caletti have also been mistaken for Guercino's.
The artist's harsh subject matter sometimes seems in conflict with his luminous, painterly style and innocent mood. A commonly depicted theme is the story of David and Goliath; a nineteenth-century historian of Ferrara stated that he had seen more than thirty paintings of the subject. There is not one Madonna and Child among Caletti's etchings, but Old Testament subjects representing the theme of undoing are seen frequently in such prints as Samson and Delilah (Bartsch 4), Judith with the Head of Holofernes, and three versions of David with the Head of Goliath. One of Caletti's more common prints is the plague-infected Saint Roch. Genre subjects include a demure, female nude bather glimpsed from behind; a short-bearded young man gazing out from behind a large beret (perhaps a self- portrait); and a shovel-brimmed hat all but hiding a face.
Caletti provided landscape settings for his figures which were economical but artful: a well-drawn tree, a cloud with an interesting shape, a group of towers, or a building reflected on the surface of a lake or river. He was also a painter of landscapes.
Good impressions of his etchings are rare, since the plates were usually lightly bitten, contained few true darks, and were often printed a bit dryly. Saint Roch was an exception and printed strongly even in its later state, where the saint's name was boldly engraved at the bottom, giving the print the appearance of a popular devotional image. Caletti's etchings resemble little sketches in pen and ink, and the artist's involvement with the act of drawing is borne out by a series of plates intended to serve as models for drawing instruction. In their directness, humanity, and gentle humor, Caletti's etchings remain appealing and accessibile to this days.
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