Art Institute of Chicago

Camping Place of the Gypsies: The Preparation of the Feast

Jacques Callot

Date

n.d.

Medium

Etching with burin on paper

Culture

France

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Jacques Callot’s Camping Place of the Gypsies is the final plate of a four-part series that forms a rare, friezelike composition when assembled. These mysterious wanderers, alternately called gypsies or Bohemians, inspired much fascination at the beginning of the 17th century. It was rumored that Callot himself joined a similar group of Bohemians in Italy when he was 12 years old. In this picaresque scene, a motley crew of disheveled itinerants takes refuge for the evening under trees. While some prepare dinner, others entertain themselves with a game of cards, perhaps to pass the time as they wait for the arrival of their newest member, visible in the background.

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