Putto jouant de la basse de viole

"Putto jouant de la basse de viole" is the companion piece to the "Putto chantant" in the Musée Magnin and depicts a musical putto playing the bass viol — the forerunner of the modern cello — with the same careful naturalistic observation of musical posture and technique that characterises its singing pair. The bass viol was a prominent instrument in seventeenth-century French musical culture, played at court and in aristocratic homes, and its representation in La Hyre's painting connected the work to the contemporary musical world in a way that was immediately legible to its original audience. Like the singing putto, this work refuses to be merely charming: the putto's posture, bow grip, and position of the instrument reflect genuine attention to how the bass viol was actually held and played, suggesting La Hyre observed real musicians as preparatory research. Together, the two putti — singing and playing — form a complete miniature music-making pair, a common configuration in ceiling and overdoor decorations of the period that allowed the pleasures of music to be integrated into domestic interior decoration as a permanent feature.

The physical challenge of rendering both the putto's figure and the large viol with equal clarity on a small support is resolved through careful management of spatial overlap and foreshortening. The bow arm is extended, creating a diagonal that gives the composition lateral energy, while the instrument's curved body and strings provide a complex of curves against which the putto's rounder anatomical forms play. The smooth, controlled handling matches that of the companion piece, ensuring visual consistency when the two works are displayed together.