Venus and Cupid in a Chariot
1616
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
You see a quick, loose sketch of Venus and Cupid riding a chariot pulled by two doves. This isn’t a finished painting—it’s a practice sheet Guercino drew to test ideas. He swapped figures in and out, trying different versions before deciding what to paint. The same chariot shows up in a house mural he did later, but with a different goddess. Look up *chiaroscuro* to see how artists like Guercino used light and shadow to shape their scenes.
![Penitent Magdalene with Angels in a Landscape [recto]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/329b67c038e377df/thumb.webp)
