A Faun Teased by Children

Bernini carved A Faun Teased by Children in 1616-17, when he was just 18 years old, early in a career that would make him the greatest sculptor of the Baroque and one of the most influential artists in European history. The sculpture was made with the assistance of his father, Pietro Bernini, also a sculptor, and it is one of the earliest works that can be attributed to Gian Lorenzo with certainty. It shows the prodigious talent that would define his career: the ability to make cold marble seem warm, soft, and alive. The sculpture shows a faun, a mythological creature that is half man and half goat, seated on a rock and teased by two children. The faun leans back, his mouth open in a laugh or a cry, while the children climb on his body and pull at his arms. One child reaches for the grapes that the faun holds, while the other tugs at his arm. The composition is dynamic and asymmetrical, with the figures twisting and turning in a complex arrangement that invites the viewer to walk around the sculpture and see it from multiple angles. The sculpture is a Bacchanal, a scene of revelry associated with Bacchus, the Roman god of wine. Fauns and children were common figures in Bacchanals, representing the wild, uninhibited side of nature. The subject was popular in Roman art, and Bernini would have known the ancient sculptures of fauns and Bacchanals that were being excavated in Rome in the early 17th century. But where the ancient sculptures are static and idealized, Bernini's faun is dynamic and naturalistic, with the figures caught in a moment of action and the marble carved with a precision that makes the skin look real. Bernini was born in Naples in 1598 and moved to Rome as a child, where his father was working for Cardinal Scipione Borghese. The young Bernini was a prodigy: by the age of 15, he was producing sculptures that rivaled the work of the best sculptors in Rome, and by the age of 20, he had produced a series of marbles for Cardinal Borghese that are among the greatest sculptures ever made. A Faun Teased by Children is one of the earliest of these works, and it shows the talent that would lead to the Apollo and Daphne, the Rape of Proserpina, and the David, all carved before Bernini was 25. Marble, 76 by 66 centimeters. Bernini carved the marble with extraordinary precision, creating surfaces that range from the smooth, polished skin of the faun to the rough, textured rock beneath. The children are carved with a delicacy that captures the softness of their flesh, while the faun is carved with a muscular energy that conveys his struggle. The grapes are carved in such fine detail that the individual berries are visible, and the leaves are so thin that the light passes through them. The sculpture is designed to be seen from all sides, with the composition changing as the viewer moves around it. The vertical format and warm marble tones make this print work well in a living room, study, or hallway. The warm whites, creams, and grays pair with white walls, dark wood, and rooms with a classical or traditional mood. The 16x20 or 18x24 size gives the sculpture room to read. The work has a lively, playful quality that suits rooms with a warm or artistic mood. This is a public domain artwork. We print it on archival matte paper at sizes from 8x10 to 18x24 inches, framed or unframed.