St Lawrence healing the blind 1563 - 1591

Giovanni Battista Pozzi made this drawing, St Lawrence healing the blind, probably in the 1580s, with pen and brown ink on paper. The drawing’s brown ink emphasizes the architectural background. It is a relatively inexpensive material, compared to rare pigments. The artist layers the ink to create depth and shadow. The composition is built on a grid; you can see the faint lines throughout. This is a sign of preparatory work. Drawings like this were not considered autonomous artworks but rather functional tools in the studio. It could have been a design for a print, fresco, or painting. Pozzi’s method is a reminder that art was work, an activity performed by skilled laborers. The drawing captures the power of materials, making, and its place in historical context. This invites us to consider the place of craft, the artist’s hand, and the skilled traditions of the artist, in understanding the artwork’s significance.