A Performance from the Commedia dell’Arte set in a Piazza

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Gherardo Poli and Giuseppe Poli
A Performance from the Commedia dell’Arte set in a Piazza
1725-1730

About the Item

Gherardo Poli (Florence, 1676 – 1745) and Giuseppe Poli (Florence, 1704 – 1747 Pisa) A Performance from the Commedia dell’Arte set in a Piazza Oil on canvas 22 ¼ x 36 ¼ inches (56.5 x 92 cm) Provenance: (Possibly) Hôtel Drouot, Paris, 14 June 1924 Galerie Georges Petit, Paris Juan Manuel Acevedo Chevallier, Paris and Buenos Aires, until 1980; by descent to his daughter: Estela Acevedo Anchorena, Countess Deym von Stritez, until 2012; thence her estate, until 2016 Exhibited: “De El Greco a Tiepolo,” Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Buenos Aires, 24 August – 27 September 1964, exhibition catalogue, cat. no. 17, as by Jacques Callot. Literature: Franco Canepa, Gherardo e Giuseppe Poli: La pittura di Capriccio nella Toscana di primo settecento, Ospedaletto, Pisa, 2002, pp. 107-108, cat. no. 68. Franco Canepa, in Fantastiche Vedute dal Ciaffieri ai Poli: La pittura di capriccio in Toscana, ed. Pierluigi Carofano, Ospedaletto, Pisa, 2006, pp. 150-151, cat. no. 78. Gherardo and Giuseppe Poli were father-and-son painters of the early eighteenth century. Although they were Florentine by birth, the Poli’s were active mainly in Pisa and must have shared a studio there, as they routinely collaborated on the architectural and theatrical scenes for which they are best known. The present painting is an outstanding example of the Poli’s capriccio compositions. A town square of elaborate, fanciful architecture is the setting for an outdoor stage on which a commedia dell’arte production takes place. A large, somewhat boisterous group gathers round the stage to watch the play, while others in groups go about their business. Franco Canepa considers the present painting to be one of the finest works by the Poli, dating it 1725-1730, the period of the closest cooperation between father and son (written communication). He identifies the figures as by the hand of Gherardo and the architectural structures by Giuseppe. Canepa has written that the Poli’s depictions of the commedia dell’arte are especially rare and important for our understanding of their art. He notes that this work presents two levels of performance. The first is constituted by the costumed and masked troupe that acts out the play before the painted curtain. The second is that of the townspeople who perform for the viewer of the painting against the background of the Baroque architecture and statues. Our painting is in many ways unique in the Poli’s oeuvre, in that the curtain backdrop behind the actors is itself a capriccio of ancient buildings, much like those in the fictive town square in which the painting is set. The works of Gherardo and Giuseppe Poli have frequently been confused with those of Jacques Callot, to whom the present painting was once attributed. The performers include the masked figure of Pulcinella at the right, and at the far left Razullo, strumming an excessively long lute. In a print by Callot, a depiction of Razullo is set before an outdoor stage strikingly similar to that seen in the present work (Fig. 1). While the Poli may have taken some inspiration from Callot’s series of etchings of commedia dell’arte characters, the present painting also appears to be a comment on Callot’s work and his time. Dr. John T. Spike, who considers this painting a work of exceptional quality by the Poli, has noted that the artists’ appropriation of Callot’s street theater scenes, painted almost a century earlier, encourages us to note the differences between these works. While Callot depicted such scenes unfolding in shabby and rural towns, the Poli’s painting sets the performance in a magnificent city filled with beautifully dressed people. In this way, the fantasy of the stage spills out into the street, as the new and improved setting and citizenry signal that whereas Callot’s day was tough and grimy, the eighteenth century was glorious and joyful (written communication).

Creator:
Gherardo Poli and Giuseppe Poli (1676 - 1745)
Creation Year:
1725-1730
Dimensions:
Height: 22.25 in (56.52 cm)Width: 36.25 in (92.08 cm)
Medium:
Canvas,Oil
Movement & Style:
Old Masters
Period:
18th Century
Condition:
Gallery Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1027006562