Drawn to Paint
Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri)
Study for the Painting 'Erminia Finding the Wounded Tancred'
1650This is the only surviving drawing for Guercino's great painting 'Erminia Finding the Wounded Tancred'. The delicate figure is only a fraction of the size of Erminia in the painting. The loose handling and vibrancy of the drawing were achieved using red chalk, which was one of Guercino's favourite drawing methods. Red chalk allowed him to work at great speed, and was easier to correct than pen and ink. Guercino concentrated solely on the figure of Erminia here: her expression, pose and billowing clothes. How she would fit into the overall composition would have been the focus of other preparatory drawings that are sadly all now lost. The survival of this sheet is invaluable, as it allows us to see how Guercino conceived this figure before rendering her in paint.
This drawing relates to the robust female figure in Guercino’s painting ‘Erminia Finding the Wounded Tancred’ (NG 2656). The painting was commissioned in 1650, and Guercino would have made a number of preparatory studies for such a vast canvas. He chose red chalk to sketch the figure, which was relatively modern, having been introduced in the late fifteenth century. This was one of his favourite media and many of his red-chalk preparatory drawings survive. The softness of the chalk allowed him to effectively convey the speed of Erminia’s flight, as her hair and draperies billow behind her. He appears to have paid more attention to how her clothing is arranged around her body than to the solid frame of her figure; her arms are suggested by a few mere strokes.
- Glossary (2 terms)
- Open
Commission, Red chalk
Commission
When an individual or organisation employs an artist to execute a particular project, the process and the resulting work are termed a ‘commission’.
Red chalk
A type of chalk containing the mineral hematite, a form of iron oxide, that is used for drawing.
Guercino was a highly original and lyrical painter and draughtsman. He was born Giovanni Francesco Barbieri in Cento near Bologna (his nickname 'Guercino' means 'squint-eyed'). He was largely self-taught, but was strongly influenced by the bold figure painting of the Carracci family and the dramatic chiaroscuro (light and shadow) of Carava
- Glossary (3 terms)
- Open
Chiaroscuro, Draughtsmanship, Foreshortening
Chiaroscuro
Derived from the Italian for "light-dark", describes the effect of light and dark in a work of art, especially when they are in strong contrast. It is a term particularly associated with painting of the 17th century.
Draughtsmanship
The ability to draw skilfully, often refers to technical drawing.
Foreshortening
The correct representation in perspective of an object or figure relative to its distance from the eye.
Did you know?
Guercino made numerous preparatory drawings for each of his paintings. His drawings were considered to be so fine that they became prized among collectors as works of art in their own right.
- Credits Purchased with the assistance of funds from The Art Fund 1997
- Medium Red chalk on paper
- Size 19.40 x 14.00 cm
