Studies of a Man’s Head in Profile, and of a Standing Male Figure 

Salvator Rosa made these pen and brown ink Studies of a Man’s Head and Standing Male Figure in seventeenth century Italy, when powerful families shaped artistic production through patronage. The idealized heads, with their classical features and heroic bearing, evoke ancient Roman portraiture. Rosa was interested in the theatre and the image may represent character studies. The male figure seems to be wearing a toga, while the head on the lower right seems to be wearing a laurel wreath. Consider how classical imagery was used to establish an ideal for aristocratic masculinity. We can read these images as a self-conscious commentary on the prevailing social structure of Rosa's time, by an artist known for his wild, romantic spirit and his opposition to artistic institutions. To understand Rosa's cultural context, we need to look into the history of theater, the political symbolism of costume, and the role of classical imagery in the construction of power.