Group of Nine Standing Figures
1524/27
Francesco Mazzola, called Parmigianino Italian, 1503-1540
Italy
This drawing exemplifies the style Parmigianino developed after his stay in Rome (1524–27), where he would have been exposed to Raphael’s frescoes in the Vatican. It may be a preparatory drawing for a painting of a religious subject; the composition has been linked to the Marriage of the Virgin and a representation of six apostles. Parmigianino’s image has been copied many times by other artists, including Count Antonio Maria Zanetti, who bought this and other drawings by Parmigianino from the Earl of Arundel.
Pen and brown ink and brush and brown wash, on tan laid paper, laid down on tan laid card