Artist Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (Italian, August 30, 1727–March 3, 1804)
Title Ananias Restoring Paul's Sight
Series A New Testament
Date 1786–1790
Medium Brown ink and wash over black chalk on paper
Dimensions Image: 18 1/2 × 14 7/16 in. (47 × 36.7 cm)
Support: 19 1/4 × 15 1/8 in. (48.9 × 38.4 cm)
Framed: 25 × 20 3/8 × 1 3/8 in. (63.5 × 51.8 × 3.5 cm)
Credit Line The Anthony Moravec Collection of Old Master Drawings, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 2010.121
About this Work
The son of the famous Venetian artist Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Domenico was also a noted draftsman. His graphic style, more earthbound and rooted in observation than his father’s, bears his distinctive trembling line quality. Domenico worked in serial narratives, including his New Testament cycle, numbering at least 320 sheets. This image is one of twelve drawings from this important series in Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art’s collection (Eskenazi Museum of Art 2010.111-.122). By combining narrative elements from a variety of literary sources with details of daily life, Domenico brought new life to these biblical stories.
After Jesus’s death, resurrection, and assumption, his disciples spread the word and performed healings. Here Philip heals and preaches with an unidentified companion in Samaria, which Domenico depicts as a small, walled city with a tower and a fortress in the background. Philip blesses a large gathering of the lame and the crippled, who crawl on the ground, hobble on crutches, or are carried. The supplicant who arrived in the wheelbarrow clasps his hands in prayer suggesting his paralysis has just been cured.
