Department: Visual Art

Jacques Callot was a printmaker born around 1592 in Nancy, Lorraine, in what is now France. He lived in Italy for many years learning engraving and then etching. The series of prints titled “Balli di Sfessania” (Dances of Sfessania) features pairs of grotesque figures inspired by the characters used in Commedia dell’arte, a type of impromptu theatre performance popular in Italy during the period. Not thought to represent specific actors, the named figures are simply posing or dancing in contortions typical of Commedia dell’arte, against backdrops of outdoor revellers.