Marjorie and Gerald Bronfman Drawing Acquisition Endowment Fund

Two Italian drawings donated from
Marjorie Bronfman’s private collection
Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo
An Angel Holding a Martyr’s Palm and Angels with a Laurel Wreath
Tiepolo produced numerous studies of this general kind featuring angels with putti in the clouds. More specifically,
it should be noted that these two drawings each contain specific attributes — a palm of martyrdom and a
laurel crown — both appropriate for any representation of Christian martyrdom. The artist use his preferred
medium of pen and brown ink and wash, handled with a typically vibrant touch.
Remarkably, the works offered pay tribute both to the continuing generosity of the Bronfman family to the
National Gallery of Canada and its Foundation, but also to their admiration for the style of the Tiepolo family.
You can admire these drawings in the exhibition Italian Neoclassical Drawings, on display until 22 August 2004
at the National Gallery of Canada.
Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo
An Angel Holding a Martyr's Palm c. 1783
pen and brown ink with brown wash,
over traces of black chalk on laid paper
28 x 20 cm
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
Gift of Marjorie Bronfman,
Westmount, Quebec, 2002
Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo
Angels with a Laurel Wreath c. 1783
pen and brown ink with grey wash
on laid paper
27.6 x 19.2 cm
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
Gift of Marjorie Bronfman,
Westmount, Quebec, 2002