Study for a Ceiling with the Personification of Counsel

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

National Gallery of Art

This is a painting of a cherub with small wings hovering in the sky amidst swirling clouds. The sky is a soft blue with streaks of darker blue tones and a section of gray on the right. This cherub holds a circular object in one hand, perhaps a crown or a wreath, and a long, thin object in the other hand. Below, people appear to lie on the rocky, reddish-brown ground. We see them from the side, and their features are indistinct. On the left seem to be a man with a dark beard and another cherub holding an indistinct object, and on the right seem to be two women who lean towards each other. The brushstrokes in the painting are thick and visible.