Ink on paper. Featuring a sketch portrait of a man. Signed G. B. Tiepolo on the lower left corner. Inscribed 1701 on the lower right corner of verso. Attributed GO giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770, Itailan). 25.5 x 18 cm (10.0 x 7.1 inches). PROVENANCE: Southern Ontario estate

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770) was a seminal Italian painter of the 18th century. Employing a palette of sherbet oranges and sky blues, he produced dynamic mythological scenes, such as Allegory of the Planets and Continents (1752). Born on March 5, 1696 in Venice, Italy, he studied with Gregorio Lazzarini as a youth, from whom he learned the technique of chiaroscuro. By the late 1710s, the artist had already established a thriving studio and completed several high-profile commissions. Around this same period, Tiepolo abandoned chiaroscuro and substantially brightened his palette, using ink-wash drawings as tonal sketches he would then format into paintings. The artist was widely regarded throughout Europe, with works owned by aristocrats in Russia, England, Germany, and Spain. However, by the end of his career in the 1770s, Tiepolo’s Rococo style had lost favor and been replaced in popularity by the Neoclassicism of Jacques-Louis David. He died on March 27, 1770 in Madrid, Spain. It was not until the advent of Impressionism during the late 19th century, that the artist’s loose brushstrokes and pastel hues were reappraised as important contributions to art history. Today, his works are held in the collections of the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, and the Prado Museum in Madrid, among others.

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American, 19th century : This work was executed by an unknown hand, and can only be identified by origin (i.e., region, period).