Artwork
Diana and Her Dog
Diana and Her Dog is an oil painting by the High Baroque Italian artist Sebastiano Ricci. It dates from 1700 and is held in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum.
About this work
Overview
Sebastiano Ricci’s oil painting *Diana and Her Dog* (1700) presents a mythological tableau in which the Roman goddess Diana is shown seated on a rock, accompanied by a dog. The composition is rendered in the high Baroque style, with a darkened backdrop that isolates the figures and emphasizes their quiet interaction.
Subject & Meaning
The work portrays Diana, traditionally the huntress goddess, in a moment of repose. She is nude, partially covered by a white cloth, and looks down at the attentive dog beside her, suggesting a personal, intimate bond that contrasts with her usual martial attributes.
Technique & Style
Executed in oil, Ricci employs strong chiaroscuro to model the figures against the deep background, a hallmark of his Venetian Baroque approach. The brushwork conveys a luminous flesh tone and a tactile sense of the dog’s fur, while the overall composition retains the vigor associated with Cortonesque fresco traditions.
History & Provenance
Created toward the end of Ricci’s career—he lived from 1659 to 1734—the painting entered the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, where it remains on display as part of the museum’s holdings of Italian Baroque art.
Context
The piece reflects the late Baroque fascination with mythological subjects rendered with dramatic lighting and rich detail. Ricci’s treatment aligns with contemporary trends that favored dynamic poses and emotional immediacy, situating the work within the broader Italian high Baroque movement.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Sebastiano Ricci (1 August 1659 – 15 May 1734) was an Italian Baroque painter of the late Baroque period in Venetian painting.
