# Bacchanal: A Faun Teased by Children [View the canonical artwork record]() ## Artwork - Artist: [BERNINI, Gian Lorenzo]() - Date: 1601-1650 - Technique: Marble, height 132,1 cm ## Commentary Gian Lorenzo Bernini was the heroic central figure of Italian Baroque sculpture. A prodigy of astonishing facility, he was trained in the workshop of his father, Pietro, an important pre-Baroque sculptor. During his apprenticeship, he executed a number of marble sculptures, which were recorded in his father's name. This, the most ambitious of those works, provides insights into the crucial shift in style that took place during the early 17th century. The subject is a somewhat mysterious one, having its origins in the Bacchic revels of classical and Renaissance iconography In his portrayal of the faun, Bernini revealed what would become a lifelong interest in the rendering of emotional and spiritual exaltation. <P> <TABLE ALIGN=LEFT CELLPADDING=5 BORDER=1 WIDTH=320 BGCOLOR="\#99CCCC"> <TR VALIGN=MIDDLE><TD><IMG SRC="/support/gif/listen.gif" BORDER=0 VALIGN=MIDDLE> Suggested listening \(streaming mp3, 7 minutes\):<BR><A HREF="\#" onClick="w=window.open \('/music1/19\_cent/saint-saens\_bacchanal.html', 'newWin', 'scrollbars=yes,status=no,dependent=yes,screenX=0,screenY=0,width=350,height=350'\);w.opener=this;w.focus\(\);return true"><B>Camille Saint-Saëns: Samson et Delila, Act III, Scene 2, Bacchanal</B></A> </TD></TR></TABLE> ## Related artworks - [A portrait of a Man]() - [A seated male nude]() - [Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius \(detail\)]() - [Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius]() - [Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius]() - [Altar Cross]() - [Angel]() - [Angel with the Column]() - [Angel with the Crown of Thorns]() - [Angel with the Superscription]() - [Angels on Ponte Sant'Angelo]() - [Apollo and Daphne \(detail\)]() ## Attribution [Web Gallery of Art]()