Provenance
(J.A. Tooth, London); purchased 24 May 1960 by (P. & D. Colnaghi, London); (sale, Sotheby's, London, 10 May 1967, no. 147);[1] Joseph F. McCrindle [1923-2008], New York; gift 1991 to NGA.
[1] The name of the consignor to the 1967 sale was kindly supplied by Chloe Stead of Sotheby's (e-mail, 22 March 2010), and Colnaghi's source and purchase date were kindly supplied by Livia Schaafsma of that firm (e-mail, 23 March 2010); both messages in NGA curatorial files.
Accession Number
1991.20.1
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 149.2 x 164 cm (58 3/4 x 64 9/16 in.) | framed: 170.2 x 185.4 x 9.2 cm (67 x 73 x 3 5/8 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Gift of Joseph F. McCrindle in memory of Mr. and Mrs. J. Fuller Feder and in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art
Tags
Painting Baroque (1600–1750) Oil Painting Canvas Italian
Background & Context
Background Story
Luca Giordano (1634-1705) was a Neapolitan painter known as Luca fa presto (Luke does it quickly) for his enormously prolific output and rapid painting style. Diana and Endymion from c. 1675-80 depicts the mythological episode in which the moon goddess Diana falls in love with the sleeping shepherd Endymion, rendered in the rapid, painterly manner that distinguishes Giordano's best work. The mythological subject was popular in Baroque painting because it allowed the depiction of a divine figure in a pastoral setting, and Giordano's rapid, painterly treatment combines the sensuous pastoral with the rapid execution that made him one of the most prolific painters of the Baroque period.
Cultural Impact
Diana and Endymion is important in Giordano's oeuvre because it demonstrates the rapid, painterly manner that made him one of the most prolific painters of the Baroque period. The mythological subject allows Giordano to combine the sensuous pastoral of the Diana and Endymion story with the rapid execution that earned him his nickname Luca fa presto, creating a painting that is simultaneously sensuous and rapid.
Why It Matters
Diana and Endymion is Giordano's rapid Baroque at its most sensuous: the mythological love of Diana for the sleeping shepherd rendered with the rapid, painterly execution that earned him his nickname Luca fa presto. The c. 1675-80 painting combines mythological pastoral with the rapid execution that made Giordano one of the most prolific Baroque painters.
