Design for the Crowning Decorations of a Gate (recto); Sketches of Stone Blocks with Measurements (verso) 1652 - 1725

Giovanni Battista Foggini made this drawing with pen and brown ink in the late 17th or early 18th century. It depicts designs for decorative stonework. Foggini worked in Florence during the late Baroque period, where he was the court sculptor to the Medici family. His work shaped the image of the city as a center of power and culture, and it reflected the values of the ruling elite. Gates, like the one represented here, were potent symbols of civic authority, demarcating public from private space and regulating the flow of people and goods. The visual codes of classical architecture reinforced the Medici’s claim to legitimacy through associations with ancient Roman emperors. By studying drawings and other archival materials, we can gain a deeper understanding of the social conditions that shaped artistic production in Foggini’s time. The meaning of art is contingent on social and institutional context.