Caricature of a Man with His Arms Folded, Standing in Profile to the Left by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo is an evocative example of 18th-century graphic satire. Created between 1755 and 1765, during the height of the Venetian Rococo master’s career, this drawing is executed in pen and brown ink, brown wash, over pencil. This swift, fluid combination of media was ideal for the rapid, expressive lines necessary for the art of caricature. Tiepolo, known globally for his grand mythological and religious frescos, was also a prolific draftsman who explored daily life and character studies in detail.
The work focuses tightly on the subject, a man captured in a commanding profile view. This angle emphasizes the exaggerated features typical of the caricature genre, which was a popular form of social commentary and private amusement among artists and patrons of the period. Tiepolo employs strong, confident ink outlines to define the figure's silhouette and costume, while the strategic application of a rich brown wash provides depth and volumetric shading, clearly distinguishing the subject’s posture and clothing from the blank background. The man's arms, crossed firmly across his chest, suggest a certain reserved or judgmental demeanor, lending psychological complexity to the observational sketch.
The practice of drawing caricatures was common among Italian artists, serving not only as personal amusement but sometimes as source material for figures in larger compositions, or as independent, satirical works. This particular drawing demonstrates Tiepolo’s remarkable ability to distill personality into a few precise strokes. As part of a significant body of the artist's graphic work, Caricature of a Man with His Arms Folded, Standing in Profile to the Left is a highlight of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s renowned collection of drawings. Given the age and provenance of the work, high-quality digital representations and resulting prints of this masterwork are often available through public domain initiatives, allowing widespread study and appreciation of Tiepolo’s unique observational skill.
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