Head of Caracalla
c. 1768
Jean-Baptiste Greuze captures the intense, brooding gaze of the Roman Emperor Caracalla in this striking red chalk drawing. The young emperor's wild, curly hair and deeply furrowed brow are rendered with energetic, scratchy lines that give the portrait a raw, almost psychological depth. Though Greuze is best known for his sentimental family scenes, here he shows off his rigorous academic training by studying a classical bust, magically turning cold stone into a living, breathing character lost in dark, imperial thoughts.
- Technique
- red chalk
- Material
- paper
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