Winged Putto Crowning a Seated Woman Who Looks to the Left 1696 - 1770

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo created this pen and brown wash drawing of a winged putto crowning a seated woman in the eighteenth century. It’s an image that speaks to the visual culture of its time. Tiepolo was working in Venice, a city that was still a major center of art and culture, but also one that was facing economic and political decline. His art embodies the elegance and theatricality of the late Baroque. You can see it in the dynamic composition and the fluid brushwork that gives the figures a sense of movement. It could be seen as a reflection of Venice's elite embracing traditional symbols of power and status in a time of change, while also acknowledging the theatrical and somewhat precarious nature of that power. To really understand this work, we can consult historical sources like period documents, art criticism, and biographies. This helps us see art not as existing in a vacuum, but as a product of specific social and institutional conditions.