L'Aurora

Circa 1850

Provenance: Robert L. and Bertina Suida Manning, New York, until 1996 Private Collection, USA One of the leading artists in Genoa during the second half of the seventeenth century, Domenico Piola came from a successful family of artists, renowned for their many illusionistic ceiling programs throughout Genoese churches and palaces. A prolific draughtsman and painter, Domenico oversaw an extremely productive studio. In addition to his collaborations with numerous other artists, Domenico also provided many designs for book illustrations and prints that circulated throughout Europe, earning him international exposure and high acclaim in his own day. As Dr. Anna Orlando has indicated (written communication), the present work is an early work by Piola, datable from the late 1640s. At this time the young artist came strongly under the influence of Castiglione and Valerio Castello, while admiring the works of Giulio Cesare Procaccini. Piola’s works from this period are exuberant and fluid, and the artist’s love of portraying children is evident from the angels and putti that populate both his altarpieces and more intimate paintings. The present work depicts three angels...

Provenance: Robert L. and Bertina Suida Manning, New York, until 1996 Private Collection, USA Giovanni Battista Viola was born in Bologna a...

This painting (oil on paper applied to wood panel, 18 x 12, 5 cm) is a valuable example of the production of small-format works, thus aimed at a private audience, which was very comm...

This painting is likely to be from the late 18th or early 19th century, and is likely inspired by Antonio Correggio's "Virtue of Vice" circa 1531. Frame dimensions: 30 x 49 inches. This painting has been in a private California collection for over 40 years. It was acquired from a high end antique...