European Drawings - 1, Catalogue of the Collections

GIOVANNI DOMENICO TIEPOLO

50 Punchinello Is Helped

to a Chair

Pen and brown ink, brown wash, and black chalk; H:

3-5. 3 cm (i3I5/i6in.); W: 47 cm (iS^in.)

84.00.10

MARKS AND INSCRIPTIONS: At top left corner, in-
scribed 96 in brown ink; at bottom right, signed Dom o
Tiepolo fin brown ink.

PROVENANCE: Richard Owen, London; Paul Suzor,
Paris; art market, Paris.

EXHIBITIONS: Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris, 1921.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: J. Byam Shaw, The Drawings ofDome-
nico Tiepolo (Boston, 1962), p. 94; A. M. Gealt and
M. E. Vetrocq, Domenico Tiepolo's Punchinello Drawings
(Bloomington, 1979), p. 145; M. E. Vetrocq, "The Div-
ertimento per li Ragazzi of Domenico Tiepolo," unpub.
Ph.D. diss., Stanford University, 1979, p. 119, no. 28; A.
Gealt, Domenico Tiepolo: The Punchinello Drawings (New
York, 1986), p. 192.

THIS IS ONE IN THE FAMOUS SERIES OF 103 DRAWINGS

by Domenico Tiepolo dealing with episodes in the life of

Punchinello which bore the title Divertimento per li

ragazzi (Diversion for Children). The scenes run the

gamut from amusement to tragedy, illuminating the

complex character of Punchinello, who was a favorite in

the Commedia dell'arte and other popular entertain-

ments.^1 He already had been represented by Domenico

and his father in the frescoes of the Tiepolo villa at

Zianigo.

This drawing shows Punchinello being helped to a

chair, presumably after some tiring bout of bad behav-

ior. As in other drawings of the series, there is consid-

erable black chalk underdrawing still visible, suggesting

numerous pentimenti, and the description of space is

somewhat ambiguous, especially along the walls. The

series has been dated by Byam Shaw to the years just be-

fore Domenico's death (1962, p. 57). It has been noted by

Vetrocq (1979, p. 145) that the woman with a fan at the

left was based upon a similarly posed figure in Domeni-

co's drawing of a puppet show in a nunnery.^2 That draw-

ing is dated 1791, lending further support to Byam

Shaw's late dating for the entire series.

1. The figure of Punchinello is discussed in detail by Vetrocq
   (1979, pp. 19-33).


2. Sotheby's, London, July 6, 1967, lot 49.

122 ITALIAN SCHOOL • G. D. TIEPOLO