Domenico Tiepolo: The Punchinello Drawings

Domenico Tiepolo studied under his famous father, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. His tour de force, done at the end of lifeprobably for his own pleasureis this series of 104 drawings depicting the life and adventures of the popular commedia dell'arte character, Punchinello. In 1921 the set was sold and dispersed. Through the efforts of Gealt and the publisher, 77 of the drawings were tracked down and are reproduced in exquisite facsimile. The rest are in black and white. Domenico's iconography is often enigmatic, at odds with the conventional Punch scenario. One astonishing drawing is of a Punchinello firing squad executing three Punchinello prisoners; it anticipates Goya's Third of May, 1808 . A wonderful album, highly recommended for all art collections. Eleanor Riley, Getty Conservation Inst. Lib., Marina del Rey, Cal.