Noah and his Sons
1850
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1850
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Noah and his Sons is a 1850 by Girolamo Carattoni, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This print shows four men in a dim room. One lies drunk on the floor, half-covered by a cloth. Two others stand over him—one pulling the cloth, the other reaching toward him. A fourth man crouches in the background, holding a staff. The lighting is sharp, with dark shadows and bright spots on their skin. The text below names this scene from the Bible, where Noah curses his son. The artist used strong contrasts between light and dark to make the figures stand out. Look up chiaroscuro to see how this lighting trick works.
