03 — ARTWORK
David (detail)
- MEDIUM
- Oil on canvas, 175 x 128 cm
- TYPE
- Religious
PALETTE
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- FILE
- 529 × 750 px · JPEG
COMMENTARY
UNDERLINED TERMS ARE DEFINED IN THE GLOSSARY.
David (detail) c. 1620 Oil on canvasA woven cloth used as a support for painting. The best-quality canvas is made of linen; other materials used are cotton, hemp, and jute. It is now so familiar a material that the word 'canvas' has become almost a synonym for an oil painting, but it was not until around 1500 that it began to rival the wooden panel (which was more expensive and took longer to prepare) as the standard support for movable paintings (the transition came later in Northern Europe than in Italy). Canvas is not suitable for painting on until it has been coated with a ground, which isolates the fabric from the paint; otherwise it will absorb too much paint, only very rough effects will be obtainable, and parts of the fabric may be rotted by the pigments. It must also be made taut on a stretcher or by some other means., 175 x 128 cm Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice
After early training in the studios of followers of Caravaggio in Rome, Domenico Fetti moved to Mantua in 1614. Here he came into contact with the exuberant painting of Rubens and with masterpieces of the great sixteenth century Venetian artists. Thus he began to work within the cultural ambit of Venice and after a first visit there in 1621 he returned to settle in the city in the following year. This David belongs to the Mantua years and is an excellent example of the fresh, lively freedom of invention of Fetti. The sensuality of the colours and the skilful placing of the figure prevail over the inky darkness of the shadows. And the young cavalier, as he places the symbols of his iconographical identity in the shadows, offers himself to the light resplendent in the brilliantly colourful tokens of his rank and his era: the red plumed cap placed boldly on his head, the downy collar and his olive-green jacket with its fashionable slashed sleeves.
CITE THIS RECORD — BIBTEX
@online{wga-rd988157ebe7582,
author = {Krén, Emil and Marx, Daniel},
title = {David (detail) by FETTI, Domenico},
organization = {{Web Gallery of Art}},
date = {2026-09-09},
url = {https://beta.wga.hu/artists/fetti-domenico-r403919c7aa22ba/david-detail-rd988157ebe7582},
urldate = {2026-09-09},
langid = {english}
}ACCESSED 2026-09-09. REPLACE THE AUTHOR FIELD WITH THE COMMENTARY AUTHOR WHERE ONE IS NAMED.
