Fighting Horsemen c. 1565 - 1566

drawing

toned paper

pen sketch

etching

junji ito style

personal sketchbook

ink drawing experimentation

pen-ink sketch

pen work

sketchbook drawing

italy

sketchbook art

"Fighting Horsemen" is a pen and brown wash drawing by Luca Cambiaso, dating back to the mid 16th century. The drawing depicts a scene of intense battle, with several horsemen locked in combat. Cambiaso, a leading artist of the Genoese school, is known for his dynamic compositions and masterful use of line. The Minneapolis Institute of Art houses this small-scale drawing, showcasing Cambiaso’s skill in capturing the energy and chaos of a battle scene. The detail of the horses and riders, along with the masterful use of chiaroscuro, convey the violence and drama of the moment.

Comments

minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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The virtuoso draftsman Luca Cambiaso was the leading artist of 16th-century Genoa. He was so prolific that his wife and his servant reportedly stoked the fire with his drawings. Even so, thousands of studies by his hand survive, more than by any other Renaissance artist. This sketch exhibits Cambiaso’s trademark cubic simplification of forms—in the heads, arms, and legs of the riders—and distinctive swift handling and lively pen lines. His inventive figural vocabulary and imaginative compositions inspired hundreds of imitators, making it difficult to distinguish his drawings from those of his followers. The watermark on this sheet locates the paper in or near Cambiaso’s studio.