Studies of Apollo Notecard

This notecard of a drawing by Giambattista Tiepolo (1696-1770) demonstrates his skillful sketching techniques. Drop a note to someone that needs some inspiration!

The nude male figure at the lower right is an early idea for the figure of Apollo, holding aloft in his left hand what we know from the final fresco to be a statuette of Fortune. As in the oil sketch, a woman supports him, grasping his knee. The other two figures, however, do not appear in the painting and are presumably part of an unexecuted scheme.

This notecard is a product made to complement the exhibition Spirit and Invention: Drawings by Giambattista and Domenico Tiepolo on view at the Morgan Library & Museum October 27, 2023 through January 28, 2024.