Young Woman on a Cloud with Three Figures (recto); Studies of an Old Man and a Hand (verso)

This double-sided sheet of studies in red chalk is an excellent and characteristic example of Furini's draftsmanship. It seems to be an early work by the artist, and the recto, with a study of a woman on a cloud, may have been preparatory for a lost painting of the 'Immaculate Conception' or, more likely, an 'Assumption.' The drawing can be dated to the late 1620s, and evidences in its figural vocabulary the influence of Furini's less gifted teacher, Matteo Rosselli (1578-1650).

Drawn in red chalk, with white gouache highlights, the sheet portrays on the recto a large study of a young woman seated on clouds, and around it, three much smaller summary figural sketches. The verso portrays a fairly finished study of a pensive old, bearded man in a nearly half-length composition (the bottom border of the sheet is cropped), and a large detail study of a male left hand on the upper right. The recto is inscribed in pen and brown ink toward the bottom left: "furino," which is more likely a signature by the artist. Less likely, this inscription represents an attribution by a mid 17th century collector, which turns out to be entirely correct.

(C.C.B., 2005)