The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 21, 2024

Man Entwined by Two Snakes

Man Entwined by Two Snakes

c. 1527
(Italian, 1483/84–1539)
Italy, 16th century
pen and brown ink and brown and blue wash, heightened with white gouache
Sheet: 19.2 x 11.7 cm (7 9/16 x 4 5/8 in.)
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1944.475
Location: not on view

Description

According to contemporary accounts, Michelangelo attended the excavation of the Greek sculpture Laocoön and His Sons when it was unearthed near Rome in 1506. Laocoön was a Trojan priest who, along with his two sons, was attacked by sea serpents sent by the goddess Athena. The emotional agony of the sculpture fascinated Michelangelo and artists throughout Italy, inspiring copies and variations. In this drawing, a northern Italian artist referenced just one figure from the story using the chiaroscuro technique—achieved here with dark and light inks on blue toned paper—to emphasize the sculptural quality of the body.
  • Marquis Charles de Valori, Paris(?) (Lugt 2500, lower right, in blue ink ).
    Prince Rustichelle, Paris (according to departmental cataloguing sheet). Emile Wauters, Paris (Lugt 911, lower left, in black ink). Winslow and Anna Ames, Springfield, Missouri (Lugt 2602a, upper right, blind stamped). [Durlacher Bros., N.Y.]
  • Master/Apprentice: Imitation and Inspiration in the Renaissance. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 13, 2019-February 23, 2020).
    Gods and Heroes: Ancient Legends in Renaissance Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-December 31, 2017).
    CMA, Treasures on Paper (May 10-July 24, 1988).
    Italian Drawings from the Permanent Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 16, 1986-March 1, 1987).
    500th Anniversary of the Birth of Pordenone. Comune di Pordenone, Pordenone, Italy (organizer) (July 21-December 15, 1984).
    Pordenone, Italy, Museo Civico di Palazzo Ricchieri, Il Pordenone (July 21-Dec. 15, 1984), no. 4.16, illus.
    CMA, "Drawings from the Collection" (Dec. 1, 1970-Jan. 31, 1971; Mar. 16, 1971- (Gallery F remained open)).
    Old Master Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 10-31, 1964).
    Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 11-September 10, 1963).
    Water Color. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 6-August 27, 1962).
    CMA, "End of Continuous Exhibition of CMA Old Master Drawings in Director's Corridor in Old Bldg." (closed Mar. 13, 1957).
    CMA (installed, director's corridor Dec. 31, 1954).
    CMA, (gallery V July 9-Nov. 7, 1948).
    CMA, "Drawings from the Collection" (Jan. 20-Apr. 26, 1948).
    CMA (Recent Accessions room June 14-Dec. 3, 1945).
  • {{cite web|title=Man Entwined by Two Snakes|url=false|author=Giovanni Antonio da Pordenone|year=c. 1527|access-date=21 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1944.475