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Circle of René Boyvin

Le Vieux Silène, ca. 1540-60

Description

Maker

  • Circle of René Boyvin, ca. 1525-after 1580, French
  • After Luca Penni, d. 1556, Italian, designer

Title

Le Vieux Silène

Year

ca. 1540-60

Medium

Engraving

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • engraving

Supports

  • Medium weight cream laid paper

Dimensions

Plate: 23.8 x 17 cm (9 3/8 x 6 11/16 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Original--Verso:in pencil, LR:O.In Plate--In LR:·L·PENIS·R·IN·

Type

  • Works on Paper,
  • Prints

Credit

Museum Works of Art Fund

Object Number

72.088

Projects & Publications

Publications

The Brilliant Line

Following the Early Modern Engraver, 1480-1650
Read Online

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

The Brilliant Line

September 18, 2009 - January 3, 2010

Made by an unknown engraver, this is one of several copies after a design by the Italian painter Luca Penni, a Florentine artist who trained with Raphael in Rome and then went to France to assist in the decoration of the Château at Fontainebleau, the country estate of King Francois I. The engraver’s style indicates that he was a close follower of René Boyvin, Paris’s leading engraver in the mid-16th century. While dependent upon the general principles of Marcantonio’s tonal system, the Parisian style is characterized by a shinier surface (achieved by crossing lines at slight angles to create moiré effects), delicate contours, and the hint of swelled lines.

Silenus was the companion and tutor to the Greek god of wine, Dionysus. Most often shown intoxicated, bald, overweight, and supported by satyrs, as we see here, Silenus was also thought to possess special prophesying powers that could only be accessed while he was intoxicated. Images of Silenus were plentiful in the Renaissance, adorning banquet halls and private rooms and serving as a source of amusement.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Le Vieux Silène with the accession number of 72.088. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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