Diogenes, seated before his barrel, reading from a book and with a plucked hen standing behind him at right

After Parmigianino (Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola) Italian

ca. 1527–30

Not on view

In addition to making his own prints, the Mannerist artist Parmigianino collaborated with a number of professional printmakers to produce an important body of engravings and chiaroscuro woodcuts after his designs. The present print of the ancient Greek philosopher Diogenes was executed by one of the great early pioneers of the chiaroscuro woodcut, Ugo da Carpi. In the hands of a few early blockcutters, the woodcut technique evolved from the use of one block, often printed in black, to the use of multiple, colored blocks to achieve maximum tonal effects. In this work, executed at the height of his career, Ugo made extensive use of four tone blocks to model form while minimally relying on line and hatching.

Artwork Details

Title: Diogenes, seated before his barrel, reading from a book and with a plucked hen standing behind him at right
Artist: Ugo da Carpi (Italian, Carpi ca. 1480–1532 Bologna)
Artist: After Parmigianino (Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola) (Italian, Parma 1503–1540 Casalmaggiore)
Date: ca. 1527–30
Medium: Chiaroscuro woodcut printed from four blocks in brown ink
Dimensions: Sheet: 19 1/8 × 13 15/16 in. (48.5 × 35.4 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1922
Object Number: 22.73.3-19
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By Ugo da Carpi

In the same medium

From the same time and place

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Aeneas walking to right with his father, Anchises, on his shoulders with a nude boy walking behind, from 'The Fire in the Borgo' (Vatican

Ugo da Carpi

Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi)

1518

The young Saint John the Baptist in the wilderness, Ugo da Carpi Italian, Chiaroscuro woodcut from two blocks in brown — The young Saint John the Baptist in the wilderness
Ugo da Carpi
Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi)
ca. 1520–27

Resurrection of Christ, Ugo da Carpi Italian, Chiaroscuro woodcut from three blocks in green — Resurrection of Christ
Ugo da Carpi
Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi)
ca. 1520–27

The Virgin and Child, Saint Sebastian, and a Bishop Saint

Multiple artists/makers

ca. 1510–20

The Massacre of the Innocents, Ugo da Carpi Italian, Chiaroscuro woodcut from three blocks in brown — The Massacre of the Innocents
Multiple artists/makers
ca. 1520–27

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