The Infante Gonzalo Gomez Excels at the Game and Dona Lambra Insults the Infants and Their Mother 1612

Editor: So, this etching by Antonio Tempesta is called "The Infante Gonzalo Gomez Excels at the Game and Dona Lambra Insults the Infants and Their Mother." It feels strangely theatrical, almost like a stage play unfolding. What kind of story do you think Tempesta is telling here? Curator: It's a story dripping with rivalry and scorn. I see it as Tempesta’s way of reflecting on the poisonous nature of envy and the consequences that come when social decorum breaks down. Does the woman with snakes for hair perhaps remind you of another figure in classical mythology? Editor: Medusa! Is Dona Lambra supposed to be like Medusa here? Curator: Perhaps, as Envy is breathing poisonous insults at the seven princes and their mother. This print seems to be a morality tale served up with a dash of visual drama. Editor: I didn't catch all of that before. Now I see the story he's trying to weave!