Caricature of a Man, Full Length, Facing Front

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo's "Caricature of a Man, Full Length, Facing Front" is a pen and brown ink drawing with brush and brown wash on ivory laid paper, a companion to the previous caricature. This full-front view of a man shows Tiepolo's mastery of the caricature genre: the subject's features are exaggerated with affectionate humor, the proportions are distorted for comic effect, but the figure remains recognizably human and engaging. The pen and ink technique is rapid and expressive, the lines flowing with the confidence of a master. The brown wash adds depth and volume. Tiepolo produced many such caricatures of the people he encountered in his daily life: fellow artists, patrons, servants, and characters on the streets of Venice. They offer a vivid record of the human comedy of 18th-century Venice, seen through the eyes of one of its greatest artists. The full-front view, facing the viewer directly, creates a different kind of comic effect from the profile view of the companion drawing, the subject confronting us with his absurdity.

Tiepolo's caricatures provide an intimate glimpse into the social world of 18th-century Venice, recording the faces and characters of a vanished world with humor and affection.

This full-front caricature captures Tiepolo's comic genius, the exaggerated features and flowing line transforming an anonymous subject into a memorable character from the human comedy.