18th Century and Earlier Portrait Paintings

Michele Desubleo (Maubeuge, 1602 - Parma, 1676) - attributable Portrait of gentleman like Solomon, the wise king Oil painting on canvas 120 x 141 cm., By gilded wooden frame cm. 134 x 162 cm. The beautiful painting shows us an image of the famous Solomon king, legendary biblical figure who became the personification of the good reigning over the centuries, and proverbially recognized as one of the wisest politicians in history. The features of the off are presumably those of the client of the work, who wanted to emphasize his image by impersonating a character with legendary fame. The reigning, with an elegant coron head of Corona of Eastern Foggia, is dressed in a sumptuous silk clothes...

Up for sale is the original antique 17th/18th-century oil painting on canvas - Dark composition with the Genre Scene with Figures in a Tavern: the male figure wearing a cap is seated smoking a pipe. A second figure in the back holding a tankard looks over the seated figure's shoulder. No visible signature. The painting is in good/antique condition and has stable craquelure. Relined. Nicely framed. Please see the photos, the photos are part of the description. Framed measures 23" x 20", Painting measures 19.5" x 16.5" _________________ We sell vintage...

The Christ Child as Redeemer of the World Oil on Canvas, 69.3 x 49.7 cm Provenance Private Collection, Belgium The present painting is known in different versions. One of them is ...

Oil on canvas. cm 60.5 x 2 x 50 Nice Oil painting (Italian School of XIX century) with a rapid sign and intense colors backgrpound. Some color cracking on left margin and top edge, ...

Dominicus van der Smissen Early 18th Century Portrait of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch Oil on canvas Image size: 20½ x 16¼ inches Period gilt frame This is a portrait of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch, composer, Kapellmeister and organist, whom Van der Smissen most probably portrayed during his stay in Hamburg, Brunswick or Amsterdam. The identification is based on the reproduction of the portrait which was engraved by Pieter Anthony Wakkerdak (1740- 1774). Van der Smissen has reduced the face of the sitters to an egg-shaped oval in three-quarter view, applying diminution to one half of the figure’s torso, which is farther away from the viewer. This partial side view, with the head turned to look at the viewer over the shoulder, creates spatial depth and brings the figure to life by avoiding the stiffness of a frontal depiction. Because the artist chose to highlight the figure from above, a distinct shadow is cast under the tip of the nose, in the shape of a triangle. This is an often recurring and almost ‘signature’-like feature in Van der Smissen’s oeuvre. Hurlebusch's garments are of a very high quality and serve to reflect the sitter’s wealth, status and elegance. During this period, gentlemen often shaved their heads in order to facilitate the wearing of a wig, which wouldbe worn with a suit. Here Hurlebusch has been depicted in a luxurious turban-like cap lined with lynx fur, a highly fashionable and expensive material at the time. Over his shirt, he wears a velvet fur-lined gown adorned with decorative clasps fashioned from silver braid. The elegant informality of his appearance can be seen in his unbuttoned shirt and the unfastened black ribbon hanging from his button hole, which has been artfully arranged into a fluttering drape by the portraitist. The Sitter Hurlebusch was born in Brunswick, Germany. He received the first instructions in his field from his father Heinrich Lorenz Hurlebusch, who was also a musician. As an organ virtuoso, he toured Europe, visiting Vienna, Munich and Italy. From 1723 to 1725 he was Kapellmeister in Stockholm; later he became Kapellmeister in Bayreuth and Brunswick, and lived in Hamburg from 1727 to 1742, where he had contact with fellow composers Johann Mattheson and Georg Philipp Telemann. He made his living composing, performing and teaching. In 1735 and 1736, he is believed to have visited Johann Sebastian Bach in Leipzig, who promoted Hurlebusch’s compositions as the local seller...

A masterful copy by an unknown artist, after the portrait of "Beatrice d'Este" by Leonardo Da Vinci also known as ‘Portrait of a Lady’ or ‘La Dama con la reticella di perle (The Lady With a Pearl Hairnet)’. The original work originally created in the 15th Century is currently on display in the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana Museum of Milan. Beatrice d'Este was the Duchess of Bari/Milan and was believed to be one of the most attractive princesses of the Renaissance. Her impeccable style won her many admirers throughout Italy and France, and she became a trendsetter of the highest order. This copy of the original painting, is an oil on canvas done in the 18th Century, and in this exquisite portrait, the artist has masterfully depicted the fine details with draped hair, pearls, royal dress, ornate headgear and sumptuous jewelry in front of a dark background. Once again, capturing the imagination with another enigmatic smile. It comes housed in an elegant period giltwood frame with ebonized trims and ready to be displayed with hanging wire on verso. Art measures 28 x 18 inches Frame measures 34.5 x 24.5 inches There is much debate and controversy over who actually painted the "Beatrice d'Este" was it Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), or Giovanni Ambrogio de Predis (1455–1508). So we may never know who executed the original portrait which hangs in the museum, but that need not deter from an appreciation of its singularity. Following the portraiture convention established by painters of the Quattrocentro, the artist has chosen to portray his sitter in profile. In doing so, he magnificently captures the essence of his sitter, a girl on the threshold of womanhood. Bedecked in the adornments—silk, velvet, pearls and embroidery (brocade) crafted of spun gold threads—afforded her by birthright and marriage, Beatrice looks forward in noble serenity. And at the same time her profile with its upturned nose and slight smile betrays an innocence that must have been the basis of the oft-repeated epithet: la più zentil donna in Italia” (“the sweetest lady in Italy”). It is believed the lady is Beatrice d'Este (1475-1497), duchess of Bari and later of Milan, the wife of Ludovico Sforza (known as "il Moro"). One of the most beautiful princesses of the Italian Renaissance, she was known for her good taste in fashion. Beatrice was a member of the Este-Sforza family, which joined by marriage two of the oldest reigning and already powerful houses in Italy. The house of Este, which held court in Ferrara, traced its lineage to the 11th century Dukes of Saxony and Bavaria. Beatriceʼs father, Ercole I ruled the Ferrara commune for 34 years, catapulting the city-state (and the Estes with it) to an unmatched level of economic prosperity and cultural prominence. The family was renowned for its love of letters and patronage of the arts. The first time Leonardo da Vinci’s name resounded in the Ambrosiana, it was through the pen of its founder, Cardinal Federico Borromeo, who attributed this little panel to the great Master, describing it as “A portrait of a Duchess of Milan, by the hand of Leonardo”. Following the Cardinal’s statement, the portrait was for long assumed to depict Beatrice d’Este, the wife of Ludovico il Moro. However, scholars have recently been more cautious and vague in their statements, with regard to both the artist (anonymous Lombard or Emilian...

The Stoning Of St Stephen, 17th Century School of François VERDIER (1651-1730) Fine 17th century French Old Master depiction of the stoning of St Stephen, oil on canvas. Excellent ...

Engraved from an Original Painting by Mr. Wootton by John Jones (c.1755-1797). Inscription to the lower edge reads at the Coffee Room, Newmarket: Also at all the Principal Towns in E...

Painter active in Lombardy, in Milan, in the seventeenth century Circle of Camillo Procaccini (Bologna 1561 - 1629 Milan) St. Matthew and the Angel ...

Agnolo di Cosimo, known as 'il Bronzino' (Monticelli of Florence, 1503 – Florence, 1572) The Holy Family with San Giovannino Oil on table (120 x 90cm. - I...

A three-quarter length portrait of Anne, Lady Russell, later Countess of Bedford (1615-1684), in a blue dress. Attributed to Sir Anthony Van Dyck.  Anne C...

Portrait of Barbara Palmer 1st Duchess of Cleveland 1640-1709, half-length wearing a red dress and portrayed within a cartouche. Circa 1680 Oil On...

Ancient painting depicting Jesus with the Commissioner's son (Alternative reading: St. Joseph with the Child, or the 'Paternity') Giovan Battista Salvi known as "the Sassoferrato" (1609 - 1685) circle / follower Oil painting on canvas 76 x 59 cm. -With frame in the shape of a small temple, not coeval 99 x 84 cm. The interesting canvas that we are pleased to offer you recalls the iconographic model of classic paternity, which traditionally sees Saint Joseph holding the sleeping baby Jesus...

The Dead Canary, 18th Century circle of Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725-1805) 18th Century French School portrait of a girl and her dead canary, oil on canvas. Beautiful oval study of t...

Carvaly Skirmish At Night, 17th Century school of Jacques Courtois (1621-1676) Large 17th Century Italian Old Master night battle with cavalry offic...

Scipione Pulzone, called Il Gaetano (Gaeta 1544 - Rome 1598) - workshop of Portrait of Bianca Cappello (Venice, 1548 - 1587) Grand Duchess of Tuscany, second wife of Francesco I de 'Medici Second half of the 16th century oil on canvas, cm. 70 x 56 cm., Framed 103 x 87 cm. The proposed painting illustrates the portrait of Bianca Cappello (Venice, 1548 - 1587), a noblewoman of Venetian origins, second wife of the Grand Duke of Tuscany Francesco I de 'Medici, whose expressive power is wisely highlighted by the composite cut of light three quarters, with the head and gaze directed at the observer. The beam of light coming from her right brings out the volumes of her face plastically and lingers on her features, highlighted by the large white lace ruff that surrounds his neck and by the details of her precious clothing. Bianca wears a dark red dress, perhaps a zimarra, embroidered in gold with a plunging neckline and a raised collar of the shirt curled in a ruff and also edged with precious lace, embroidered with the motif of the Florentine lily.   The favorite jewels of the noblewoman were pearls: we see them on a choker that adorns the neckline, in the earrings and again in the hairstyle, which sees the hair gathered at the nape of the neck and adorned with a string of small black pearls and embellished with a clasp. It is a high-quality painting that can be confined to the workshop of the painter Scipione Pulzone called Gaetano, representing at best a pictorial genre, that of portraiture, in which the master excelled. This attribution would be confirmed by comparisons with the numerous portraits that Pulzone dedicated to the Medici family. Our painting, in particular, could represent one of the versions that the workshop has replicated, at the request of the numerous art collectors who wish to have a portrait of one of the most influential personalities of the Florentine scene. The characters drawn by Pulzone were icons of incomparable elegance: noblewomen, knights and religious lent their faces to the eye of the artist who was able to grasp every meticulous detail with his superb technique. A photographic wealth and surprising material attention that trace the pictorial prototypes of Flemish inspiration, in particular of Antonis Mor...

The Battle Of The Peasants, 17th Century by M D HOUT (1627-1680) Large 17th Century Dutch Old Master scene of peasants fighting, oil on panel by M ...

The Annunciation, 15th Century circle of Andrea del Castagno 15th Century Italian Renaissance depiction of the Annunciation, oil on panel. Early...

Lombard painter active in the 17th century Infant Jesus Oil painting on canvas 70 x 82 cm. - In antique frame 78 x 91 cm. This painting depicts an unusual and pleasant iconographic...

Artist/ School: French School, 18th century Title: The Garden of Gethsemane Medium: oil painting on wooden panel, unframed. painting: measurem...

Signed 'BDandridge/ pinxit' lower left Provenance By descent through the sitter's family to The Collection of R. W. Vivian-Neal of Poundisford Park, Somerset, from whom acquired by With Lane Fine Art, UK, where purchased by the present owners in 1996 Literature 'Poundisford Park, Somerset' in Country Life, 22 December 1934, ill. A.W. and C.M. Vivian-Neal, Poundisford Park, Somerset: A catalogue of pictures and furniture, Taunton 1939, cat. nos. 11 and 13 This is a portrait of Ann Austen, nee Grey, three-quarter-length seated in a landscape with her dog. Painted in a superb white satin dress, she holds horn spectacles and a spectacle case...

Giacomo Stella (Brescia 1545 - Rome 1630) Allegory of Wisdom (or prudence) Oil painting on canvas 193 x 75 cm., In frame 199 x 82 cm. The work is accompanied by critical study drawn...

Attributed to Jacques DUMONT aka DUMONT LE ROMAIN (Paris 1701 - 1781) Presumed portrait of Louis-Joseph de Formanoir (?-1732) Oil on canvas H. 91.5 cm; ...

Bust Portrait of a wigged man in a Brown Coat Circle of Gilbert Stuart (1755 - 1828) Irish oil on canvas, unframed size: 30 x 25 inches condition: ver...

Marcantonio Bassetti (Verona 1586-1630) Ritratto di uomo di legge Olio su tela, cm 38x27,5; con cornice cm 59,5x48,5 Le caratteristiche pittoriche della persona ritratta sembrano rin...

Saint John the Evangelist French school of the eighteenth century Oil painting on canvas 82 x 64 cm. - in frame 102 x 84 cm. In this pleasant painting we see the portrait of the evangelist John, holding a pen in his hand while writing the pages of the Gospel, while behind him it is possible to recognize the profile of an eagle, his typical iconographic attribute. The graceful face, which still reveals the devout attitude, which gives the painting a more intimate and delicate, not excessive religiosity, is one of the typical characteristics for works intended for domestic devotion, as in the case of this Saint John. From the representation of the Saint the freshness of his features immediately stands out, he is in fact portrayed as young and handsome: and it is precisely this iconographic peculiarity that makes the work fascinating and very pleasant, probably commissioned for a private room. The painting presents the peculiarities of eighteenth-century French portraiture, characterized by a soft drawing and a wise use of light. The rather marked chiaroscuro and well-calibrated shades produce an excellent result thanks to the play of light on the face, highlighted by the dark background of the scene. The painting has been relined and is in an excellent state of conservation with the colors still bright and a very healthy pictorial layer. The painting is sold together with a nice golden frame. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The work is sold with a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic card. We take care and organize the transport of the purchased works, both for Italy and abroad, through professional and insured carriers. It is also possible to see the painting in the Riva del Garda...

Portrait Of A Senior British Military Officer, Identified as Charles Sackville, 6th Earl Of Dorset (1643-1706) circle of Sir Godfrey KNELLER...

Arrival To The The New World, 17th Century European School - Early historical depiction of 16th Century Europeans Large 17th Century scene of ...

"As the incarnate of dawn shines in the morning, such a blushed Diane's complexion exposed without veils to the eyes of a mortal" Les Métamorphoses by Ovide Less tragic is our destin...

Still Life Of Flowers In A Vase, 17th Century circle of JEAN BAPTISTE MONNOYER (1636-1699) Large 17th century French Old Master Still Life of various flowers in a vase upon a mantle, oil on canvas by Jean Baptiste Monnoyer. Excellent quality and condition example of the famous still life painters work, authenticated from the published designs of Nicolas de Poilly...

Oil on canvas Image size: 28 3/4 x 24 inches (73 x 61 cm) Contemporary style gilt frame This portrait is an evocative example of Devis' Regency period portraiture, featuring a pleasant looking young girl holding a book in an outdoor setting. Working with a darker palette, a strongly accented diagonal recession, and dramatic contrasts of light and shadow, Devis heightens the girl's three-dimensional physical presence in the foreground of the composition. The Artist  Arthur William Devis (10 August 1762 – 11 February 1822) was an English painter of history paintings and portraits. He painted portraits and historical subjects, sixty-five of which he exhibited (1779–1821) at the Royal Academy. Among his more famous works are a depiction of the Death of Nelson and a posthumous portrait of Nelson. Devis was born in London, the nineteenth child of the artist Arthur Devis and his wife Elizabeth Faulkner. Devis was the younger brother of the painter Thomas Anthony Devis (1757–1810) and of the schoolmistress and grammarian Ellin Devis (1746–1820), teacher, among others, of author of Maria Edgeworth and Frances Burney (later novelist Madame d'Arblay). He followed his elder brother Thomas Anthony in becoming a pupil at the Royal Academy Schools in 1774 and like his brother exhibited at the Free Society of Artists, of which in 1768 their father had become president, and at the Royal Academy. Early on he came to the notice of Sir Joshua Reynolds. He was appointed draughtsman on the British East India Company's packet Antelope in a voyage in 1783, under Captain Henry Wilson. In her he was injured in an encounter with Papuans near the Schouten Islands and was then wrecked on the Pelew Islands before proceeding to Canton and thence to Bengal. During his voyages, the artist received arrow wounds, one of which inflicted permanent injury on his lower jaw. During his time in Bengal, he painted a portrait of Sir William Jones, at the time a judge in Fort William. The painting now hangs at the British Library. He was back in London by 1795 and is recorded on 21 July 1797 as living at 27 George Street, Hanover Square, where he was insured by the Sun Assurance Office. He is noted for his involvement in the creation of the posthumous cult of Horatio Nelson. As she returned from Trafalgar, Devis went out to meet HMS Victory and was present on board the ship during the autopsy of Nelson's body conducted by Dr Beatty, the ship's surgeon. With the help of sketches he took at that time, he painted a heroic Death of Nelson, which proved a sensation. Devis also painted Dr Beatty, and was commissioned by him to produce a half-length painting of Nelson as vice-admiral, which he lent to Emma Hamilton (who later lost it in an accident whilst travelling). Either the original or a copy of this portrait was exhibited at the Royal Academy two years after the Battle and many copies were made of it. Lord Howe owned one, and another ended up in the collection of the National Maritime Museum. It also appeared as an engraving in Beatty's published account of Nelson's death. Other work includes a portrait of King George III on horseback, and a range of portraits of admirals and generals, along with historical subjects, such as the Babington Plot and the signing of the Magna Carta...

Attributed to Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646 - 1723) A Portrait of Ochius, also called The Passia Ahmed Oil on canvas In a gilded frame Painted circa 1689 following the siege of Belgrad...

Artist/ School: English School, circa 1740's Title: Portrait of a Lady, traditionally identified as 'Anne of Chesterfield'. Medium: oil painting on canvas, framed Size: painting: ...

The Penitent Magdalene, 17th Century circle of CARLO DOLCI (1616-1686) Large 17th century Italian old Master depiction of the Penitent Magdalene, oil on ...

Bartolomeo Passerotti ( Bologna 1529 – 3 giugno 1592) Ritratto di Gentiluomo con cane Olio su tavola, Sec. XVI, cm 84x69; con cornice 101x87 // Bartolomeo Passerotti (Bologna 1529...

Follower of Pierre Gobert 18th century French The Duke and Duchess of Burgundy Oil on canvas Refinement and intricacy characterize these royal portra...

Oil on canvas Image size: 30 x 25 inches (76 x 63.5 cm) Original gilt swept frame After the death of Sir Joshua Reynolds in 1792, Hoppner was considered by his contemporaries to be England’s most important portrait painter. Having entered the Royal Academy Schools in 1775, by 1785 Hoppner had risen meteorically from painting the gentry to exhibiting portraits of...

Portrait Of Flora, 18th Century after TITIAN (1488-1576) - Large Study Large 18th century Italian old Master Renaissance depiction of the Goddess of Spring, Flora, oil on canvas. ...

School of Antonio Allegri, known as Correggio (Correggio c. 1489 - 1534) Attributable to Pomponio Allegri (Correggio, 1522 - Parma, 1593) Madonna and Child, Two Angels and John the B...

Lionel Cranfield Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset (1688-1745), 18th Century Michael DAHL (1659-1743) Large 18th Century English portrait of Lionel Sackvi...

Portrait Of Gertrude Durnford, Lady Alston (1731-1807), 18th Century Studio of Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) Large 18th Century English portrait ...

Spanish School (16th century) Saint Fermin of Pamplona oil on canvas 40.1/8 x 32.½ in. (102 x 82.5 cm.) Condition: oil on canvas re-lined. Extensive surface dirt and varnish discolouration, craquelure throughout, possible stretcher bar marks. Probable retouches in a 17th century wood frame with painted decoration to corners and central spans. The frame has abrasions and knocks but suits the painting well. There is some shrinkage to some of the paint on the frame. Following some detailed research, we are confident this is a portrait of San Fermin...

Scandinavian Family Portrait Artist 18th century 18th Century Scandinavian School Signature: Not signed Medium: Miniature Dimensions: Image size diameter 11 cm, frame size 19 x 16 cm

What is so wonderful and unusual about this 18th Century portrait is the relatability of the sitter. There is an openness to the world in his gaze, curiosity, a sense of humour, pass...

18th/19th Century School 'A scene of Christ entering Jerusalem' Medium: oil on canvas, framed Size of painting: 21.5" x 18.25" inches condition: overa...

Thomas Spencer was a leading sporting and equestrian artist of the period of John Wootton and James Seymour; his art shows a considerable to debt to tha...

Portrait of a nobleman by an unknown artist , titled "Sir" on a London label on verso. A man dressed in dark robes with a white collar looks directly at the viewer. Heavy age toning ...

Portrait of a Girl holding a Posy. Oil on Panel 17 1/2 x 13 inches 44.4 x 33 cm ABOUT THE ARTIST:  Jacques d'Agar  was a French portrait painter born i...

PORTRAIT OF BARBARA PALMER, THE DUCHESS OF CLEVELAND, workshop of Sir Peter Lely (1618-1680) Oil on canvas, excellent coniditon in a gilded frame...

Venus Warning Adonis, 16th Century school of Paolo Veronese (1528-1588) Huge 16th century Italian Venetian School Old Master depiction of Venus & Ado...

Santi di Tito Ritratto di Nobildonna Olio su tavola, Sec. XVI, cm 74x61; con cornice 116x100x9 Con procedere degli studi su Santi di Tito, del quale è stata recentemente precisata la nascita fiorentina , si viene sempre più definendo come non solo una delle personalità più interessanti della scena artistica fiorentina, ma anche come il più interessante ritrattista cittadino della seconda metà del Cinquecento. L'attribuzione di questo ritratto al pittore, che nell'impresa dello Studiolo di Francesco I fu uno dei maggiori innovatori fra i giovani riuniti da Vasari e Borghini, appare subito evidente per l’inconfondibile disegno ovale e fermo del volto, reso con un incarnato compatto dai toni rosati che si accende di naturalistiche notazioni epidermiche ma anche di una puntuale figurazioni degli elmenti decorativi dell’abito e dell’acconciatura. Sempre coerente con i modi pittorici di Santi è poi la pittura compatta con la quale vengono definiti i piani semplificati del volto delle donna, che conservano una notazione di luce e di naturale sensibilità in linea con i dettami controriformati dei quali il pittore fu uno dei più fedeli osservanti nella scena fiorentina. Sempre tipica di Santi di Tito è poi la ferma e volumetrica rappresentazione del torso e dell’abito definito nei piccoli intagli della stoffa ma allo stesso tempo semplificato nei volumi delle maniche e del busto. Ancora di santi ci sembra la notazione luministica con la quale è rilevato il disegno dell’abito attraverso stesure compatte ma sottili e trasparenti, oppure è resa la gorgiera bianca che aggiunge una luce netta all’intero dipinto. Una simile scelta pittorica appare nel Ritratto di Guido Guardi coi figli, esposto alla mostra Il Cinquecento a Firenze, (Palazzo Strozzi, 21 settembre 2017 – 21 gennaio 2018, n. IV. 5, pp. 156-157), dove, pur in un ritratto maschile, Santi di Tito usa la medesima cifra formale nella resa dei volti e delle gorgiere. Pur nell'attenzione alle caratteristiche fisionomiche, Santi di Tito conserva, infatti, una cifra disegnativa sempre evidente e riconoscibile pur col passare degli anni, un carattere stilistico che sostiene, con volumi saldi, ogni sua differente prova pittorica. Ne sono un esempio dipinti quali il Ritratto di donna con Figlia, già in collezione Koelliker2, oppure il Ritratto di Lucrezia (Emilia) e Sinibaldo di Niccol Gaddi3, tutti databili agli anni settanta del Cinquecento proprio per la stereometrica definizione delle forma. Col passare degli anni, invece, tale carattere di ascendenza bronzinesca sembra cedere sempre più in favore di una pittura più morbida e sensibile, chiamata a raggiungere esiti di naturalezza sempre maggiore. Dipinto emblematico per seguire tale percorso rimane il già citato Ritratto di Guido Guardi con i figli , dove Santi di Tito ha effigiato il capofamiglia subito dopo il suo ritorno da Roma, fra il 1564 e il 1568, al tempo in cui il Guardi commission al pittore anche una pala con una Natività per la cappella di famiglia a San Giuseppe. L’uomo, seduto su uno scranno, sembra rimandare per la posa arcaizzante alla ritrattistica di primo Cinquecento, alla quale Santi di Tito s’ispira anche per le pieghe frante ma scultoree dell’abito. Sulla stessa tavola, probabilmente verso la fine degli anni settanta del Cinquecento, il pittore venne chiamato ad aggiungere le effigi di figli, quando probabilmente l’opera era già in cornice, e lo fece con una pittura più svolta e libera, in modo da raggiungere effetti naturalistici di maggiore sensibilità. Anche nel Ritratto di donna in esame, i volumi saldi e potenti della figura spiccano sul fondo monocromo della parete con un’evidenza che farebbe pensare alle figure eseguite dalla fine degli anni Settanta del Cinquecento, al pari, appunto dei due figli di Guido Guardi. Nato a Firenze nel 1536, Santi di Tito si form prima da Bastiano da Montecarlo per passare poi dal Bronzino, del quale conserv la preferenza per volumi luminosi e torniti, a cui aggiunse un'attenzione per la chiarezza compositiva e il naturalismo richiesti dai dettami della Controriforma, che lo portarono a guardare allo stile di Scipione Pulzone...

Chickens & Other Birds In A Farmyard, 18th Century circle of Marmaduke CRADOCK (c.1660-1717) Fine 18th Century English School farmyard scene of var...

Painting oil on panel measuring 40 x 30 cm without frame and 48 x 38 with frame representing a great bishop of the Venetian school from the first half of the 18th century. Very curi...

Circle of Pieter Harmensz Verelst 1618 - 1678 Portrait of a Young Man Oil on oak panel Image size: 7 ½ x 5 ¾ inches Dutch ripple frame

Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – 1680 London) Portrait of lady with a crown, possibly Bridget Drury Lady Shaw, formerly Viscountess Kilmorey, later Lady Baber (d.1696) c.1665 Oil on canvas 46 1/2 x 40 3/4 inches, Framed 42 1/4 x 36 1/4 inches, Unframed Inscribed left [……….]Isabella James Mulraine wrote the following for this piece: This portrait dates to the middle of the 1660s, the decade when Lely’s career took off as successor to Sir Anthony van Dyck. At the Restoration Charles II had appointed him Principal Painter to the King and paid a pension £200 per annum ‘as formerly to Sr. Vandyke...’1 Lely had trained in Haarlem and he was in his early twenties when he came to London in 1643. He was an astute businessman and a wise courtier. In 1650 he painted a portrait of Oliver Cromwell (Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery) while maintaining links with the Royalist exiles through the 1650s. He had arrived in England as a painter of small-scale portraits and lush scenes of nymphs in landscapes in a Dutch style. His experience of Van Dyck in English collections transformed his painting. His lavish and alluring vision of Arcadia exactly captured the spirit of the Court and as Principal Painter he dominated English portraiture for the next twenty years. Lely ran a highly efficient studio along Netherlandish lines, employing a team of specialists like the drapery painter John Baptist Gaspars and young artists-in-training like Nicolas de Largilliere. He had numerous rivals during that period, and by 1670 he had introduced numbered standard poses to speed up production, while collaborating with printmakers for further revenue and advertising. He died in 1680 of a stroke while painting, working to the last. The portrait, painted at a date when Lely’s poses and execution were still individual and inventive shows a lady sitting at three-quarter length facing away from the viewer. She has begun to turn towards the viewer, a pose with a long pedigree in art, first used by Leonardo da Vinci in the Mona Lisa (Louvre). She steadies her blue drapery where it might slip from her arm with the movement, a flash of realism beautifully captured. Like Van Dyck, Lely painted his female sitters in a timeless costume rather than contemporary fashion, showing a loose gown and floating silk draperies. It presented the sitter as a classical ideal. The portrait would not date. The saffron dress may be the work of a drapery painter but the brown scarf must be by Lely himself, and appears unfinished, broadly sketched in behind the shoulder. The delicate blue glaze and nervous highlights suggest shimmering translucence. Lely was a master of painting hands – his hand studies are marvels of drawing – and the lady’s hands are superb, exactly drawn, delicately modelled and expressive. The fidgety gestures, clutching the gown, fiddling with the edge of the scarf, give the portrait psychological bite, suggesting the personality behind the calm courtier’s expression, adding to the sense shown in the look of the eyes and mouth that the lady is about to speak. The portrait’s language is Vandykian. The inspiration comes directly from Van Dyck’s English portraits of women. Lely owned Van Dyck’s Portrait of Lady Elizabeth Thimbleby and Dorothy Viscountess Andover (National Gallery, London) and the sitter’s costume quotes Lady Andover’s saffron dress and brown scarf. But Lely paints a generation who sat nearer to the ground and through a dialogue of expression and gesture he shows sitters who are more flesh and blood than Van Dyck’s. The background with a column and curtain is different to those shown in most of Lely’s portraits of women. They tend to include trees or fountains, with a glimpse of landscape. But there are other examples. A portrait of the King’s reigning mistress, Barbara Villiers Duchess of Cleveland...

Evangelista Schiano (attr.) (active in the 18th century) Saint Gennaro Oil on canvas, cm. 102 x 74 - with frame 126,5 x 100 cm. 19th century carved, sculpted and gilded wooden frame ...

Portrait Of A Venetian Commander In Armour, 16th Century Italian School - Circle of TITIAN Large 16th Century Italian School portrait of a Venetian Commander in armour, oil on canvas. Superb quality and condition rare early Venetian portrait...

Portrait Of Madame De Cotte, circa 1710 circle of Hyacinthe RIGAUD (1659-1743) - one of a pair Large circa 1710 French portrait of Madame De Cotte, ...