cat060 (Parmigianino 1883)

Parmigianino

(1503−1540)

Studies for Lucretia, Proserpina, and Mercury

c. 1535−38

Pen and wash in brown ink, heightened

188 × 96 mm

Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest 1883

The drawing was inspired by Marcantonio Raimondi’s engraving of Lucretia that Parmigianino transformed into an elegant slim figure. For the Roman heroine’s right arm grasping a dagger, he drew a small detail study at top of the sheet, based on a live model holding a staff. The work was intended for Parmigianino’s lost painting representing the suicide of Lucretia.

drawing, Parmigianino, pen-and-ink