God the Father Appearing to Jacob

Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione (Il Grechetto)

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Castiglione is one the most innovative and technically brilliant draftsman of his time, a claim that is amply demonstrated through this drawing. He often made large compositions by working spontaneously on the paper, mixing different media to create an almost rough appearance that greatly enlivens the scene. Here, supported by angels and surrounded by putti, God appears to Jacob, who kneels on the ground accompanied by his two wives, Leah and Rachel, and two infants. Within this expansive landscape, the artist included a classical temple at right and fragments of architectural elements on the ground at left. They have nothing to do with the narrative scene but help balance the composition visually.

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.

Metropolitan Museum of Art