Study for the Figure of Christ Carrying the Cross

about 1513–1514

Medium

Black chalk, on blue paper (now discolored)

Dimensions

16.9 × 12 cm

Status

In Museum Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-214087

A tender and moving drawing, this is a preparatory study for Sebastiano del Piombo's painting of Christ Carrying the Cross (P00345) now in the Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid. The pose, lighting and drapery of the figure in the Madrid painting are closely paralleled in the present drawing, which also indicates the position of the cross resting on Christ's shoulder. Differences in the facial features, the hair, and the addition of the crown of thorns in the painting suggest that the artist drew the sheet from a studio assistant placed in the pose of Christ. The drawing is a fascinating mix of Venetian and Roman draftsmanship, Sebastiano having trained and worked in Venice until arriving in Rome in 1511, two years before he made this sheet. There is the classic Venetian combination of blue paper with black chalk, and a characteristic softness of modelling in the facial features. On the Roman side there is a solidity to the drapery and a density to the form that shows Sebastiano's exposure to the draftsmanship of Raphael and Michelangelo, the latter of whom would become a key influence and mentor. The painting for which this is a study was commissioned by the Spanish Ambassador …