Gold Framed Copper Etching Print “Dionysus With a Crouching Satyr by Dutch Artist Jan De Bisschop (1668-1669)”

Description

The original etching is of a Statue of a standing Dionysus with a Satyr kneeling at his feet, from a … more The original etching is of a Statue of a standing Dionysus with a Satyr kneeling at his feet, from a suite of 100 etchings entitled Signorum Veterum Icones, Dutch, 1669.

This framed art piece is in excellent preloved condition with no major imperfections.

Plate 5 from de Bisschop's suite entitled Signorum Veterum Icones. The print shows in reverse a statue of Dionysus standing and looking downward, towards the satyr.

Jan de Bisschop (1628-1671), also known as Johannes Episcopius, was a Dutch painter and printmaker. He first studied to be become a lawyer but then abandoned the profession in order to study art. In 1656 de Bisschop took part in the foundation of the Confrerie Pictura, a club of artists, in The Hague.

He was particularly interested in the teaching of art and this resulted in his making two series of prints based on classical statues and on sixteenth and seventeenth century artists for students to draw from. The first of these suites is the Signorum Veterum Icones which was published by Nicolaes Visscher in two parts in 1668 and 1669 while the Paradigmata Graphices variorum artificum in 1671. The two volumes of the Icones were subsequently published in one single edition, together with the Paradigmata. The Icones comprises of a suite of 100 plates of reproductive prints of sculptures, including a large number of well known statues of the Greek and Roman period. The second suite, the Paradigmata, consists of 57 reproductive plates of paintings and sculptures by Italian and Dutch sixteenth and seventeenth century artists.

The print represents a marble group with Dionysus, Greek god of wine, with a satyr kneeling at his feet. He is shown completely naked apart from a small piece of drapery on his right shoulder. In both his hands the god holds a patera, a dish used for rituals. In the original statue the join points of the restoration at the figure's knees, neck and arms are visible. These marks are not shown in the print.

The study of naked young bodies was especially important in the instruction of an artist. Statues such as this provided models from which artists could study from. This statue of the Dionysus was in the collection of the Medici family since the end of the sixteenth century. It is now held in Uffizi Gallery, Florence.

The print was framed by Alexandria Picture Framing in
Alexandria, VA on June 10, 2008.

The Frame measures 14.25” Tall x 9.25” Wide x 1” Deep. It weighs 1 pound 5.3 ounces or 21.31 ounces or 602 grams. less