# Sketch for "The Four Prophets of Israel" (for Il Gesù, Rome)

**Giovanni Battista Gaulli** (Italian, 1639–1709)  
c. 1675–1677  
oil on canvas  
Framed: 81.3 x 68 x 9 cm (32 x 26 3/4 x 3 9/16 in.); Unframed: 67.3 x 55 cm (26 1/2 x 21 5/8 in.)

Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.131. [The museum's record](https://clevelandart.org/art/1969.131).

## About this work

This small painting represents the four prophets of Israel: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. It is one of seven oil sketches made in preparation for the decoration of the four pendentives in the Jesuit Church of the Gesù in Rome. The artist, one of the most prominent large-scale decorative painters in Rome, is known for his grand painting of the vault of the Gesù. Giovanni Batista Gaulli followed the Italian decorative tradition by preparing this sketch, called a bozzetto, to work out his ideas before the final fresco was painted. Fresco painting was the most desirable media for public and private locations, created by mixing dry pigment into wet plaster. They are an ideal permanent decoration; however, the process is tedious and thorough preparation is essential to ensure high quality. Oil sketches would aid the artist in creating a final composition and choosing their palette and would be particularly helpful for awkward spaces such as the pendentive, an inverted triangle. In this scene, Gaulli changed his initial composition for the final fresco, balancing the four prophets and young putti with the young Daniel as the most prominent figure motioning toward the dome.

_Text from the Cleveland Museum of Art._

Giovanni Battista Gaulli painted this in about 1675–1677, aged about 31. It is now at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Giovanni Battista Gaulli](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/giovanni-battista-gaulli)

Italian, 1639–1709

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- Culture: Italy
- The artist was about 31
- Real size: about 26 × 22 in (67 × 55 cm). The 18 × 24 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 17th century
- Movement: [Baroque](https://www.ochreeditions.com/movements/baroque)
- Colour: brown
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/672.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/672/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/sketch-for-the-four-prophets-of-israel-for-il-gesu-rome-cma-144302).