The Descent from the Cross

From the Getty Museum record

In this emotionally charged and vigorously drawn pen-and-ink depiction of the Descent from the Cross, Bandinelli combines diverse elements to create a striking scene. The architectural rhythm of the multi-figure composition is built around a dynamic pyramidal structure, focusing on the angled, off-center, Cross. The Madonna sits grieving at its foot, shocked but engaged with the process of the deposition, encapsulating a pathos further expressed by the dramatic poses of the figures around her. Set against a background of long, diagonal, regularly spaced hatch marks, the figures’ gestures, postures, and expressions are rich with Donatellesque psychological complexity. The drawing is a rare survival. It is a finished study—a modello—for an important bronze relief presented to the Emperor Charles V. The artist has brilliantly explored the gestures and placement of every figure, demonstrating the suitability of drawing to capture the closed-background effect of a work in relief. The exceptional provenance of the sheet bears further witness to its importance. From the early collections of Nicholas Lanier and Padre Sebastiano Resta, it continued its journey through two of the greatest collections of eighteenth-century France, those of the Pierre Crozat and Pierre Jean Mariette.