David with the Head of Goliath, ca.1620 Born in Rome in the year 1589, Domenico Fetti was a Baroque painter whose poetry and realism of the figure would leave a deep impression over the centuries. A contemporary of Strozzi and Liss , Fetti would help to influence Venetian art with the boldness of Baroque chiaroscuro and strong figures. His work has the rare quality of lingering in the mind long after viewing it; his portraiture has uncanny powers of unmasking the person behind the character, effortlessly. In Fetti's David with the Head of Goliath we see a Venetian influence of color, contrasting warm against cool, with the sky as a prominent element of the composition. This theme of David conquering Goliath, a force larger than himself, has been painted and sculpted by countless artists throughout history and here Fetti portrays him as a boy who became a man by conquering his fear, ready to embrace his destiny as king. The body language of David sitting on a rock uses dynam...
Thoughts and inspirations on art from the Old Masters to my own art