Rest on the Flight into Egypt - Bartolomeo Biscaino

Elizabeth Hammond Stickney Collection

"Rest on the Flight into Egypt" by Bartolomeo Biscaino (n.d.) Etching printed in reddish brown on paper.

Commentary

"Rest on the Flight into Egypt" by Bartolomeo Biscaino (n.d.) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. The print-based method rewards close viewing, where line, texture, and contrast do most of the expressive work. Themes to notice include etching. This piece is held in the source collection's Prints and Drawings collection. Bartolomeo Biscaino is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Bartolomeo Biscaino Italian, before 1629-1657. The work is cataloged within a Italy cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as etching, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Etching printed in reddish brown on paper) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (18.7 × 24.7 cm (7 3/8 × 9 3/4 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include etching. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/89

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data