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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt 1627 fresco Duomo di Piacenza |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (detail) 1627 fresco Duomo di Piacenza |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (detail) 1627 fresco Duomo di Piacenza |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Compositional Study) 1627 drawing Musée du Louvre |
"Of the drawings that have come to light since 1994, the most illuminating is the early compositional study for the Rest on the Flight into Egypt [directly above] in the Louvre, identified by Catherine Loisel. All three protagonists appear, except for the ass, but they are positioned differently. The motif of the Christ Child lying on the ground, lifting up his arms to be picked up, originates from Raphael and his school and was adopted later, among others, by Guido Reni. In the Louvre drawing, the adoring foster father reaches towards his adoptive son, while the Virgin is relegated to the shadows, as she uncovers her breast to suckle the Child. In the fresco, the action has moved a step further. Joseph has picked Jesus up and is passing him to his mother, making feeding time a greater focus of the composition."
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Compositional Study) 1627 drawing National Gallery of Art, Washington DC |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Compositional Study) 1627 drawing private collection |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Compositional Study) 1627 drawing Ashmolean Museum, Oxford |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Compositional Study) 1627 drawing Ashmolean Museum, Oxford |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Drapery Study for the Virgin) 1627 drawing Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Drapery Study for the Virgin) 1627 drawing Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart |
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| Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Study for the Ass) 1627 drawing Musée des Beaux-Arts, Besançon |
– quoted text from The Paintings of Guercino: a revised and expanded catalogue raisonné by Nicholas Turner (Rome: Ugo Bozzi Editore, 2017)