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David and Goliath (verso)

Claude Lorrain

1645

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Baroque Baroque

Dominant colour

David and Goliath (verso) is a 1645 by Claude Lorrain, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Claude Lorrain
When & what style?: 1645 · Baroque
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

You see a quiet hillside with a stone arch, trees, and a few tiny figures near a spring. This isn’t a quick sketch—it’s a dream of ancient Rome. The artist knew the spot well but rearranged it to feel timeless, like a place from a myth. The light is soft, almost golden, making the scene feel peaceful. If you like this, look up *chiaroscuro*—how artists use light and shadow to shape a scene.

The story of this work

Overview

This drawing represents a view of the famous Acqua Acetosa, a mineral spring that until the 19th century provided the favored drinking water of Romans who believed in its healing powers. Although topographically accurate, the sheet is not a plein-air study but a vision of an imagined Arcadian world carefully rendered by Gellée, one of the most original painters of the 17th century. The French-born artist spent his career painting and drawing the Roman Campagna and the Neopolitan coastline. Sublimely beautiful pen-and-ink and wash drawings such as the example here reveal the artist's highly…

Read the full account in the museum source.