Artwork
Collection of Various Caprices and New Designs of Cartouches and Ornaments: No 11
Collection of Various Caprices and New Designs of Cartouches and Ornaments: No 11 is a print by the Baroque artist Stefano Della Bella. It dates from 1646 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1646, this print belongs to Stefano della Bella’s series of ornamental designs. Executed as an etching, it presents a decorative cartouche populated by four cherubic figures that support a swirled, crown‑like frame. Rendered in monochrome, the composition relies on fine shading to model the figures, vines, flowers and ribbons that intertwine throughout the border.
Subject & Meaning
The central motif features two pairs of plump, winged youths—reminiscent of putti—arranged to uphold the elaborate frame. Their playful posture and the surrounding foliage suggest a celebration of artistic embellishment, a visual device often employed to frame inscriptions or heraldic symbols in architectural settings.
Technique & Style
Della Bella employed the etching technique, incising lines onto a copper plate before printing on paper. The work exemplifies Baroque sensibilities through its dynamic composition, intricate scrollwork, and the contrast of dense chiaroscuro shading that gives depth to the figures and ornamental foliage.
History & Provenance
Part of a larger corpus of over a thousand prints produced by della Bella, this piece reflects the artist’s prolific output in 17th‑century Italy. The series of cartouches and ornaments was likely intended for use by architects and designers as pattern books for decorative schemes in palatial interiors.
Context
During the Baroque period, decorative cartouches served as ornamental frames for murals, ceilings and wall panels in aristocratic residences. Della Bella’s designs contributed to the visual vocabulary of the era, providing ready‑made motifs that could be adapted to a variety of architectural programs across Europe.
Artist & collection
Artist
Stefano della Bella (18 May 1610 – 12 July 1664) was an Italian draughtsman and printmaker known for etchings of a great variety of subjects, including military and court scenes, landscapes, and lively genre scenes.
![The Flight into Egypt [verso], by Stefano Della Bella](https://artifactworldgallery.com/img/stefano-della-bella--the-flight-into-egypt-verso--3a100db72e6d25e3-w320.webp)
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Collection of Various Caprices and New Designs of Cartouches and Ornaments: No. 2, Dedication Page
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