Philosophical school 

Salvator Rosa sketched this so-called "Philosophical School" in pen and brown ink, using brown wash over graphite on paper. Rosa was a master of the quickly-wrought, evocative drawing. Here, he lets us see the material process by which he arrived at his compositions. You can almost feel the scratch of the pen across the page. This directness gives the drawing immediacy, as if the artist were thinking right before our eyes. The rapidly sketched figures suggest a flurry of activity. Rosa did not belabor details; he aimed instead for overall effect, a quality prized in the Baroque era. Think of the virtuoso violinist, who seems to conjure brilliant music out of thin air, but in fact has disciplined technique as well as inspiration. Rosa’s drawings give that same impression. They were a mainstay of his practice, and immensely popular with collectors during his lifetime.