Study of a Young Woman Playing a Tambourine, and Studies of an Arm, Hands, and Feet (Studies for "Miriam Leading the Chorus of Women Who Give Thanks for the Routing of Pharoah"

1711

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Dominant colour

Study of a Young Woman Playing a Tambourine, and Studies of an Arm, Hands, and Feet (Studies for "Miriam Leading the Chorus of Women Who Give Thanks for the Routing of Pharoah" is a 1711 by Marcantonio Franceschini, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Marcantonio Franceschini
When & what style?: 1711 · Baroque
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

This painting shows a young woman playing a tambourine. She's surrounded by studies of an arm, hands, and feet. These sketches were made to prepare for a bigger work. The details in this painting are interesting because they show the artist's process. The studies of feet and hands are drawn carefully. To learn more, look up the museum where this painting is kept, The Cleveland Museum of Art.

The story of this work

Overview

This sheet of studies in red chalk was made in preparation for the composition Miriam Leading the Chorus of Women Who Give Thanks for the Routing of Pharaoh, a final episode in the story of the Israelites' exodus from Egypt. The Bolognese artist Marcantonio Franceschini painted the cartoon of the complete composition between 1711 and 1712, and it was used to decorate an important papal building, the Palazzo della Cancelleria in Rome, where it remains today. While the studies of feet and the head and shoulders with raised arms are for the principal figure of Miriam playing the tambourine, the…

Read the full account in the museum source.

About the artist

Artist

Marcantonio Franceschini

Marcantonio Franceschini (Italian pronunciation: ; 1648 – 24 December 1729) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active mostly in his native Bologna. He was the father and teacher of Giacomo Franceschini.

See the richer artist page