(William Tell)

Ferruccio Bolognesi

Italian printmaker, sculptor and theater stage/costume designer Ferruccio Bolognesi did this drypoint in 1971 in the small edition of 25 impressions.

Bolognesi's work has been defined as "naive surrealism", and is steeped in the myths, opera, circus and theater of his native Northern Italian city of Mantova (Mantua). That aspect of his work is seen in this simple drypoint depicting the 16th century Swiss legend of William Tell, shooting an apple off his son Walter's head (though the legend speaks of a crossbow) on November 18, 1307.

The legend is the subject of Gioachino Rossini's 1829 opera "William Tell" for which he composed the "William Tell Overture", the fourth part of which was made famous to many Americans as the theme for the radio program "The Lone Ranger".