Polyphemus
by SEBASTIANO DEL PIOMBO, Fresco
In the Loggia di Galatea of the Villa Farnesina, Sebastiano del Piombo depicted the cyclops Polyphemus sitting on a charming, idyllic coastline with a dog, a flute, sand a shepherd’s crook. He is looking longingly at the sea, out to the right, where in the adjacent field of the wall Raphael depicted the voyage of the nereid Galatea. Sebastiano’s Polyphemus is a Venetian painting of mood, rich in atmosphere, treated in an airy and loose style.