The Madonna and Child Seated on a Dais with Tobias and the Angel and a Saint Presenting Two Children

Pietro Giacomo Palmieri

1774

ink

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Romanticism 18th Century Religious

About this work

This sketch shows a group of figures in a loose, swirling style. At the center sits a woman holding a child, surrounded by winged babies and adults with flowing robes. The lines are quick and uneven, like a hurried drawing. The artist used only pen and brown ink, with no shading—just thick, tangled strokes. It feels like a rough draft, not a finished work. Next, look up putti to see how these winged kids show up in other art.