FEDERICO BAROCCI (URBINO C. 1535-URBINO 1612)
The head of an old man
c.1575RCIN 905232
A chronic illness restricted Barocci’s painting activity to short periods in the morning and evening. But he was a prolific draughtsman, and used coloured chalks more extensively than any other artist before the eighteenth century, allowing him to determine both lighting and colour in a preparatory sheet. This may be a study for one of the background heads in his altarpiece known as the Madonna del Popolo (Uffizi).
No. 53