The Descent from the Cross with Saint Francis and Another Friar 1619

This drawing, The Descent from the Cross with Saint Francis and Another Friar, was made by Jacopo Ligozzi, probably sometime in the late 16th or early 17th century. Ligozzi used pen and brown ink, with brown wash, heightened with white gouache, on a paper prepared with brown wash; a fairly typical, if elaborate, method for the period. The way he’s built up the image is significant. You can see the marks of the pen everywhere, giving the image its structure. But then he’s gone over it with layers of brown wash, which pools and gathers to give the figures weight and volume. Finally, touches of white gouache bring out the highlights, directing our eye. It’s important to remember that drawings like this were not seen as ends in themselves. They were made in the service of larger projects, like paintings or prints. So in a way, Ligozzi was working a bit like a factory, breaking down the labour of picture-making into different stages. This approach was typical of the time, and reminds us that even the most seemingly personal works of art are actually collaborative efforts.