Artwork
Bertoldino with the Birds Carried Away By the Kite
Bertoldino with the Birds Carried Away By the Kite is an ink print by the Baroque artist Giuseppe Maria Crespi. It dates from 1712 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Giuseppe Maria Crespi, an Italian artist of the late Baroque period associated with the Bolognese School, produced an etching titled *Bertoldino with the Birds Carried Away By the Kite* around 1712. Executed on laid paper, the work is part of the National Gallery of Art’s collection in Washington, D.C.
Subject & Meaning
The composition shows a youthful figure, a putto, positioned before a modest doorway. He stretches his arms upward, eyes fixed on a kite that lifts a string of birds into the sky. The boy’s expression conveys astonishment, suggesting a playful narrative drawn from popular folk tales of the era.
Technique & Style
Crespi employed fine etched lines and subtle shading to render texture and depth, emphasizing the movement of the kite and the birds. The delicate handling of line typical of early 18th‑century etching creates a sense of immediacy and realism within the otherwise simple architectural setting.
History & Provenance
Although Crespi was chiefly known in his lifetime for religious commissions and portraiture, his reputation later shifted toward genre scenes such as this whimsical print. The etching entered the National Gallery of Art’s holdings through acquisition, where it remains on view as an example of his printmaking.
Artist & collection
Artist
Giuseppe Maria Crespi (14 March 1665 – 16 July 1747), nicknamed Lo Spagnuolo ('The Spaniard'), was an Italian late Baroque painter of the Bolognese School.
Bertoldino Fastening Geese to His Belt
Bertoldino Falling into a Fish Pond
Bertoldino Whipping Himself to Kill Flies
Marcolfa Sees Bertoldino Hatching Eggs
Bertoldino Cutting Off the Donkey's Ears
Bertoldo Stuffed in a Sack
Bertoldo Riding a Donkey
Bertoldino Enraged by the Croaking Frogs
Bertoldo Holding a Hare