Strokes of Genius

This catalogue presents more than fifty masterful Italian drawings from the 16th and 17th centuries: working drawings, preparatory sketches, and finished compositions that have been added in recent years to the private collection of Jean and Steven Goldman. Jean Goldman, an independent scholar specializing in Italian Renaissance and Baroque art, assesses the role of drawing in the business of art, and the collection within the context of Mannerism. Nicolas Schwed, an independent scholar and gallery owner in Paris, coauthors with her detailed entries on the works' attributions, subjects and functions, complete with documentation including provenance, bibliography, exhibition history, and comparative illustrations. The catalogue presents the work of more than forty artists, some of whom, such as Giorgio Vasari and Pietro da Cortona, were major figures, and others virtually unknown. Together, these magnificent works trace the rise of Mannerism in Italy in the 16th century and its evolution in the 17th century.