Public data from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Learn more
About the Artwork
The Genoese painter Bernardo Strozzi drew this female figure in preparation for one of his major oil paintings, also in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art (1929.133). Recent scholarship has convincingly identified the subject as Minerva. The Roman goddess of war has put aside her armor for more contemplative pursuits; her upward gaze—as if seeking inspiration—recalls her other associations with wisdom, eloquence, and the arts. The figure is one of a number of single female figures associated with intellectual and artistic pursuits made by Strozzi in the 1630s when he lived and worked in Venice. Such works appealed to his learned patrons in northern Italy.
Inscriptions
lower left, in brown ink: Prete Genovese; verso, lower center, in brown ink: P.G. r: 35.
Provenance
1644?-ca. 1654: possibly to Strozzi's pupil Ermanno Stroiffi (1616-1693), Venice ca. 1654: "Borghese"-Sagredo collection, Venice (Lugt 2103a, with associated inscription "P.G. no. 35") -1729: by descent to Zaccaria Sagredo (1653-1729), Venice 1729-1738: by descent to his nephew, Gherardo Sagredo (died 1738) 1953: with Hans M. Calmann (1899-1982), London 1953-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
The Venetian Tradition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (November 8, 1956-January 1, 1957). Italian and French Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 13, 1959-February 2, 1960). Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 11-September 10, 1963). Old Master Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 10-31, 1964). Art in Italy, 1600-1700. The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (organizer) (April 6-May 9, 1965). Art in Italy, 1600-1700. The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (organizer) (April 6-May 9, 1965). Old Master Prints and Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 29, 1966-February 28, 1967). Prints and Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 29-June 6, 1967). Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 9, 1967-January 1, 1968). Bernardo Strozzi: Paintings and Drawings. University Art Museum, Binghamton, NY (organizer) (October 8-November 5, 1967). Italian Prints and Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 30-March 26, 1968). Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 11-October 21, 1968). Old Master Drawings from American Collections. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA (organizer) (April 29-June 13, 1976). Idea to Image: Preparatory Studies from the Renaissance to Impressionism. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (February 19-March 23, 1980). Connoisseurship in Italian Figural Compositions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 1980-February 15, 1981). Italian Drawings from the Permanent Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 16, 1986-March 1, 1987). Concept, Dogma and Feeling: Italian Drawings 1550-1650. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 27-October 20, 1991). Bernardo Strozzi: Genova 1581/82-Venezia 1644. Palazzo Ducale (Genova), Genova, Italy (May 6-August 6, 1995). Master Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 27-October 17, 2000); The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, NY (May 23-August 19, 2001); Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston, TX (October 14, 2001-January 6, 2002).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Bernardo Strozzi (Italian, 1581?-1644)
- Date
- c. 1635
- Medium
- black chalk with red chalk
- Dimensions
- Matted: 55.7 x 40.5 cm (21 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.); Sheet: 37.3 x 26.2 cm (14 11/16 x 10 5/16 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- John L. Severance Fund
- Accession no.
- 1953.626
More by Bernardo Strozzi in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 7, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00000315
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