A Dance in the Country

Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo

ca. 1755 · Oil on canvas · European Paintings

Unlike his father, the younger Tiepolo did not pursue complex allegorical schemes, but expressed his artistic personality most strongly through idealized depictions of contemporary life. This country dance combines figures dressed fashionably and in the archetypal costumes of the Italian comedy, including the jaunty figure of Mezzetin at center and the masked, hatted character of Punchinello, or Punch, who was a favorite of the artist. Though the mood is very different from the elder Tiepolo’s paintings, similarly unexpected and playful tricks of composition and dramatic foreshortening appear here, such as the chair turned away at right and Mezzetin’s incredible pose: raised on one leg with his elbow pointed toward the viewer.

Artist

Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo

Date

ca. 1755

Medium

Oil on canvas

Department

European Paintings

Credit line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman, 1980