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Livio Agresti

Design for a Spandrel: A Roman Martyr and Two Putti–Saint Jude the Apostle

1573/75
Pen and brown ink, with brush and brown wash, heightened with lead white gouache, on blue laid paper
23.8 × 27 cm (9.4 × 10.6 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Louise Bross identified the figure as Saint Jude the Apostle and the sheet as possibly an early idea for the placement of soldier-martyrs in the spandrels of the Chapel of the Trinity at Santo Spirito in Sassia. The dramatic contrasts of the brown ink, blue paper, and white highlights further animate the figure’s illusionistic pose.

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