Pastoral Scene

1740

This painting of a half-naked boy holding a basket of grapes has been interpreted as the infant Bacchus, the god of wine, although Piazzetta, one of Vencie's leading painters, made no reference in his description. The artist was probably responding to his patron’s taste for pastoral scenes, a genre that appealed to middle- and upper-class city dwellers for its idealized views of rural life.

Public domain · CC0
Free to download and reuse. Image courtesy of Art Institute of Chicago.

Artist

Giovanni Battista Piazzetta (Italian, 1682–1754)

Date

1740

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

191.8 × 143 cm (75 1/2 × 56 1/4 in.); Framed: 208.3 × 158.8 × 10.2 cm (82 × 62 1/2 × 4 in.)

Origin

Italy

Collection

Art Institute of Chicago

Credit

Charles H. and Mary F. S. Worcester Collection