Double Handled Urn

Giuseppe Grisoni · n.d.

Medium

Gouache, heightened with gold paint, over black chalk, on ivory laid paper

Original size

23 × 15.6 cm (9 1/16 × 6 3/16 in.)

Currently held

Art Institute of Chicago

Movement

Baroque

Delicate yet opulent, this study of a double-handled urn captures the decorative ambition of an era when the line between fine art and applied design was deliberately blurred. Giuseppe Grisoni was a Flemish-born painter who trained in Rome under Benedetto Luti before spending formative years in England, where he built a reputation for portraiture and ornamental work. This piece reflects a lesser-seen side of his practice — the careful study of objects rendered with the precision of a craftsman and the eye of a painter. Working in gouache over black chalk on ivory laid paper, Grisoni used gold heightening to bring the urn's surface to life, mimicking the shimmer of gilded ceramic or metalwork with quiet confidence. The use of ivory laid paper was a deliberate choice among eighteenth-century draughtsmen working in gouache, as its warm tone softened the opacity of the paint and allowed the gold accents to read with particular warmth. Our hand-painted oil reproduction translates Grisoni's layered technique into a new medium, preserving the luminosity of the original's gold detailing and the sculptural weight of the vessel, making a rare and understated work accessible beyond the Art Institute of Chicago's collection.