Design for Angels in Pendentives c. 17th century

Giovanni Battista della Rovere made this drawing for angels in pendentives with pen and brown ink with brown wash over black chalk. Della Rovere was working in Italy at a time when the Catholic Church was eager to use art as a tool for reinforcing its doctrines. The imposing settings of churches provided surfaces to display the glory of God. A pendentive is a curved, triangular support that allows a circular dome to rest on a square base. The angels in this drawing are designed to fill this architectural space. Italian artists working in the late 16th and early 17th centuries were under pressure to conform to Church expectations, as well as to the tastes of wealthy patrons. However, some, like della Rovere, found ways to express individuality within these constraints. Art historians can look at surviving drawings, contracts, and other archival material to gain insights into the artistic and cultural context of the time.