| Description |  |
Many of the paintings in this gallery created for the "cabinets", or private rooms, of discerning collectors, who prized the superior intellect and technique required to achieve grandeur on a small scale. Some of the paintings are highly finished, with exquisite, jewel-like surfaces, whether executed with distinctive brushwork or without any trace of the brush. To accentuate the refined handling of paint, several of these were painted on cooper. Other paintings in this room were made as sketches, both to present schemes for huge murals to patrons and to serve models in their full-scale realization. Large works of art were often painted with assistants, so cabinet pictures and oil sketches have been avidly collected because they are entirely by the hand of the artist. |
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