Giovanni Battista Salvi (Il Sassoferrato)
1789
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
About the artist
1789
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Dominant colour
Giovanni Battista Salvi (Il Sassoferrato) is a 1789 ink by Carlo Lasinio, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This is a portrait of a man with dark hair and a mustache. He’s wearing a white collar and a dark garment over his shoulders. The background is a solid blue, and his face is lit from the side, making one cheek brighter than the other. The name at the bottom reads *Giovanni Battista Salvi*, but the artist’s signature and date (1789) are also visible. This is a printed image, not a painting, made using a technique that creates shadows with tiny etched lines. Look up *chiaroscuro* next to see how artists like this used light and dark to shape faces.
