Giltwood Paintings

WWII, how are you? Private Theater: Gay American Soldier in Reflection, Original WWII-Era Gouache, Signed CSG A highly nuanced, emotionally layered, and visually accomplished original painting in gouache and watercolor on Whatman drawing board, signed CSG lower right. This rare mid-20th-century work portrays a seated U.S. Army Air Forces officer—smiling faintly, cigarette in hand, and with a small black-bound diary resting on his lap—lost in reverie as smoke from his cigarette rises and transforms into the visages of three idealized male figures. Rendered in an illustrative realist style with tonal sensitivity and surreal suggestion, the composition invites interpretation as an interior portrait of desire, intimacy, and memory—quietly coded, emotionally sincere, and possibly autobiographical. The figure wears a regulation-issue A-2 leather flight jacket, iconic of U.S. Army Air Forces personnel during WWII. The jacket is detailed with a personalized, hand-painted circular patch depicting a lion rampant in a blue roundel—a heraldic symbol of power, pride, and possibly self-invention. An American flag patch is affixed to the left shoulder. The jacket, traditionally worn by bomber crews, officers, and pilots, functions here not only as a marker of military identity but as a gendered and cultural signifier—suggesting the complex intersection of duty, masculinity, and private identity. The slightly open collar, relaxed posture, and cigarette suggest the officer is off-duty—physically grounded but mentally elsewhere. The seated figure’s companions—summoned in smoke—appear above and behind him in a dreamlike procession: a helmeted infantryman, a pilot in goggles, and a hat-wearing civilian (?) man posed in pin-up style. Each face is rendered with tenderness and idealization, not as ghosts or casualties, but as romantic or erotic conquests: remembered lovers, fleeting encounters, or imagined partners. Their expressions, softly lit and emotionally present, reflect a form of desire neither tormented nor tragic. This is not a meditation on loss but on intimacy remembered, perhaps treasured. On the table beside him rests a small bronze Buddha...

An original impressionist oil on canvas, circa 1920, by listed Hungarian artist Witman Etelka Vizkeleti (1882-1962), signed lower right. Depicts a vibrant marketplace scene with two ...

Antique Vanitas Oil Painting, Antique Memento Mori Oil Painting, Antique Skull Oil Painting, Gothic Antique Painting, 19th Century Vanitas Still Life Oil Painting. Early 19th Century French Vanitas Oil Painting on Canvas. The Old Master Vanitas Still Life Painting depicts a skull, book and rosary. Oil on canvas, lined. Unsigned. In gold gilt period frame. Very well painted, attractive & highly decorative Vanitas skull...

Featured in the book A Savannah Experience, by Myrtle Jones, this large pastel painting is one of the artist's finest paintings. Acrylic on canv...

Painting of a casual, abstract female body in oil on newspaper by Antonio Guanse, Paris 1963 The woman's body lolls casually under the artist's brushstrokes. The abstract depiction ...

Oil on canvas depicting a colorful floral bouquet with tulips, roses and other garden flowers in Dutch style. Some with dew drops and tiny insects. Presented in a custom paint decora...

Charles D. Hartley (British/American, 19th Century) Scottish Highlands landscape oil on canvas canvas: 30 by 18 inches Frame: 33 ½ by 21 ½ inches

A fine Italian 19th century oil painting on canvas "La Madonna della Seggiola" after Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino 1483-1520). The circular painted canvas depicting a seated Ma...

Decorate a living room with style with this elegant pair of antique panels. Created in France circa 1830, and measuring 7 feet, the panels are set in a carved gilt frame and are hand...

A French oil on canvas still-life floral painting in the Dutch School style from the 18th century, in giltwood frame. Born in France during the Age of Enlightenment, this exquisite f...

This beautiful Painting titled “The Recital” by Ted Jones (Irish 1952-2017) depicts a young girl in Traditional Irish Costume seated beside her music teacher. Wonderful oil on Canvas...

The grand Georgain oil on canvas portrait stands nearly five feet tall and depicts a handsome middle aged gentleman wearing a wig, a smart dress coat with long waistcoat and white si...

2 portraits, late 18th century, oil on board.

***Reduced Delivery Rates - See Below or Click “Ask The Seller” to Request a Quote*** Large Antique 18thC Portrait Painting Signed By Thomas Beach (English 1738-1806) Seated in Gilt...

Large 19th Century English Oil Painting -Five Hunting Dogs- signed E. Armfield. Large, signed painting in oil on canvas. This ...

Impressive well painted 19th century Russian oil on canvas of hunt scene or chase featuring troika pulled by 6 horses in full stride. Man armed w...

Still Life Oil On Canvas Painting of Garden Flowers in Table Top Vase, Giltwood Framed, 20thC Measures- 27''H x 31.5''D x 4.75''D; 23.5'' x 19.5''D

Set of Four Panels Decorated with Allegories of Arts France Circa 1865 Height. : 180 cm (70,9 in.) ; Width : 63,5 cm (25 in.) ; Depth : 12 cm (4,7 in.) Set of four large painted panels, in carved and gilded wood. The upper part of each panel is decorated with allegories of the arts, representing music...

Decorate a wall with this beautiful antique painting. Set in the original carved gilt wood frame, the artwork depicts Saint Francis of Assisi in meditation in a religious ecsatasy. T...

Decorate a study or a den with this antique chicken painting composition. Created in Belgium circa 1890, and set in the original thick carved giltwood frame, this large painting depi...

Hans Zatzka (Austrian, 1859-1945) a very fine and charming oil on canvas "Spring Beauties", depicting three young maidens picking flowers by a lake. The three young girls sitting, kneeling and laying on a grassy area of the forest, her wicker basket filled with the freshly picked flowers, the middle one wearing a bonnet and a straw-hat laying on the ground behind with butterflies flying by, within a gilt-wood and gesso carved frame. Signed (l/r): H. Zatzka. Circa: 1890-1900's, Hans Zatzka (Austrian, 1859-1945) was a well known and regarded Austrian fantasy artist whose most popular and valuable works depicted figures of young maidens with angels, floral and other cheerful and warm scenes, including Orientalist themes. In the past thirty years alone, the high quality and detail of his beautiful paintings has caught the attention of International collectors and art dealers alike, creating a highly sought after market and demand for his instantly recognizable body of work. In the late 19th and early 20th century, many of Zazka's charming works were photographed for commercial and collectable postcards. Though no information about his works being exhibited in museums is currently available, most of Zatzka's paintings are in private collections and, in the past century, very few of them have become available on the open market. At the young age of eighteen Zatzka joined Austria's Academy of Fine Arts under the leadership of Professor Blaas. For his fine early works, in 1880 he received The Golden Fügermedal award. Zatzka, like many other artists of the era, traveled around Europe working and selling his art and, in one of his many trips to Italy, he developed a special interest in Religious themes, decorating churches with frescos as well as painting several religious scenes of Madonna's and Child, Saints, Angels and others. In 1885 Zatzka was commissioned to paint "The Naiad of Baden" a ceiling fresco at Kurhaus Baden. Most of Zatzka's income came from his work in religious art and special church commissions. Numerous leading art dealers from around the world that specialize in late 19th and early 20th century European genre paintings have come to the conclusion that the painter signing his works Bernard Zatzka, Joseph Bernard or J. Bernard is almost certainly the artist Hans Zatzka. The consensus seems quite plausible when comparing works known to have been executed by Hans Zatzka together with similar works displaying the signature; Joseph Bernard, J. Bernard or Bernard Zatzka. Lohengrin refers to the knight of the swan, hero of German versions of a legend widely known in variant forms from the European Middle Ages onward. It seems to bear some relation to the northern European folktale of “The Seven Swans,” but its actual origin is uncertain. It is also a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans...

Michele Antonio Rapos (Turin 1733-1819), Still life of flowers and fruits, Oil on canvas frame: cm H 133 x W 124 x D 8 (canvas: cm 108.5 x 108.5) The painting depicts a triumph of ...

A Very Large and Quite Impressive 19th C. Italian Oil on Canvas Painting, 'Departure of the Guests', F. Beda. The oil painting Departure of the Guests, signed by Francesco Beda, capt...

ANTIQUE ORIGINAL OIL PAINTING Depicting two young girls, probably sisters with rosy cheeks in matching blue dresses holding flowers in an interior setting in front of a regency/Will...

A very fine Italian 18th century oil on canvas "Madonna and Child" after Giovanni Lanfranco (Italian, 1582-1647). The young Virgin Mary attending to...

19th Century Italian Painting of The Virgin of the Fish done in the Purisimo Style. Revivalist piece of a Raphael Painting. The Virgin Mary & baby Jesus with Saint Jerome and Arc Angel...

A peaceful French painting on canvas depicting landscape scene featuring a house or small castle in ruins, a water with a bridge nearby. The painting is contained in a simple gold le...

Huge Vintage Mid Century Lee Reynolds Asian Oil Painting Faux Gold Bamboo Framed Monumental, Mid Century Modern, Lee Reynolds' signed oil painting, on canvas, of a lush Asian-inspir...

Beautiful oil on canvas scene of a brook running through a woodland. Lovely old patina and warmth of tone highlight this stately piece, clearly created by a master painter. The gilt ...

Please note this the painting is dark as original photograph displays. This exceptional late 18th-century Neoclassical hand-painted panel, crafted on canvas and mounted to a board,...

Raimundo De Madrazo y Garreta (Spanish School, 1841-1920) an exceptional and palatial oil on canvas "Portrait of Isabelle McCreery” depicting an elegant woman gracefully exiting a litter (Sedan Chair), situated within a lovely fairytale setting of a fantastical vista dominated by verdant and blue-green hues, a pair of swans and a lily pad frame the scene in the foreground, within it's original impressive and ornate French 19th Century Rococo Style gildwood carved and gesso frame. Signed and dated ‘R. Madrazo, 1880' (lower left). At the bottom center of the impressive frame there is a gilded, wooden cartouch bearing in italicized script “Portrait of Isabelle McCreery.” This is original to the frame. Sometime after the death of the artist, possibly at the time the painting was given to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the painter’s name was added in block letters. Provenance: The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (Donated by Mrs. Richard McCreery in 1950). M.H. de Young Memorial Fine Arts Museum, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Christie's New York, 31 December 1969, Sale Property of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Sold for the Benefit of Museum Acquisitions Funds. Lot 80A for $20,700 Canvas Height: 104 ¾ inches (266.1 cm). Canvas Width: 68 ½ inches (174 cm). Frame Height: 132 inches (335.3 cm). Frame Width: 87 ½ inches (222.3 cm). The work of Raimundo de Madrazo, an artist who lived in Paris the greater part of his life, is among the most representative and influential of the ‘school’ of Spanish painters resident in Paris during the nineteenth century.” (Carlos González and Montse Martí, Spanish Painters in Paris 1850-1900, London, 1989, p. 53). The wonderful imagination and artistic genius of Madrazo y Garreta established his fine reputation, and created an international demand for his exquisite portraiture. This particular work features an elegant woman who gracefully exits a litter, situated within a lovely fairytale setting of a fantastical vista dominated by verdant and blue-green hues. Isabelle McCreery was a member of the noted Gold Rush pioneer McCreery family of Irish background who settled in San Francisco in the mid nineteenth century. She later lived in Burlingame, an early San Francisco...

17th Century Flemish Old Master Painting Circle of Frans Francken Rare 17th century Flemish School painting, circle of Frans Francken the Younger (1581-1642). This Cabinet picture, ...

Portrait of a man with a twisted moustache, in the typical dark suit of the Art Nouveau era of the end of the 19th century. Gilt tablet frame, with floral decorations. Tempera techn...

A Belgian framed oil on canvas painting by Charles Van den Eycken (1859 – 1923), depicting two dogs in an interior. Created in Belgium during th...

19th Century French Sea Scape Painting Beautiful painting purchased in France Age appropriate wear, see detailed photos or message us with any questi...

An English oil on board horse painting from the 20th century by K.M Nadler, in carved giltwood frame. Immerse yourself in a captivating depiction of equine grace with this mesmerizing 20th-century oil on board horse painting by the artist K.M. Nadler, born in 1928. This elegant artwork, framed in a luxurious carved giltwood frame, beckons the viewer into a tranquil stable setting. Nadler’s exquisite brushwork breathes life into the magnificent horse that stands poised and serene, portrayed in profile. The finesse in capturing the horse’s anatomy and the subtle sheen on its coat reveals a mastery of realism. The depth in the horse’s eye whispers tales of its unwavering spirit. Adding a dramatic element, an ethereal light source from the upper right casts an emphatic shadow on the stable wall, enveloping the scene in an enigmatic aura. The ambiance is further enriched with red terracotta floor tiles...

An elegant pair of Early 19th Century portraits of your couple. The pair in appropriate newer gilt wood frames with oval liner. The paintings have been properly cleaned, re-stretch...

Italian 17th century still life painting in period carved gilt frame Italian school still life painting from the workshop of a great master. The 17th century Baroque painting in oil...

French School, 18th century. Oil on Canvas painting set in an antique giltwood frame. Unsigned. An 18th century portrait painting of a young Philip V or at this time Duke of Anjou....

Vintage seascape acrylic painting in giltwood frame. Signed and dated at lower left: Eriaine 1981; Inscribed in Danish at the back. A loose translation of the title: "The Sea is Migh...

A French framed oil on canvas still-life painting from the 19th century depicting fruits, signed Morin. Created in France during the 19th century, this oil on canvas painting features mouth-watering cherries and prunes displayed in wicker baskets and flanked with a copper strainer...

A fine quality circa 1780 oil on canvas portrait painting of a gentleman in powdered wig, coat, waistcoat, and frilled shirt housed in a period giltwood frame having bead and lamb's tongue design. Red wax seal collection...

Pier Francesco Cittadini (Milan, 1616-Bologna, 1681) "Jacob and his family go to Egypt" Oil on canvas, cm 109 x 190 (canvas only) The valuable painting, made in oil on canvas, depicts Jacob and his family go to Egypt and we believe it can be, given the high quality painting, autograph work of Italian Pier Francesco Cittadini (Italy Milan, 1616 - Bologna, 1681) made after 1647. The work, in excellent condition is accompanied by a coeval frame in wood finely carved and golden. The scene depicted, which was confused with the Flight to Egypt in the past years, is instead identified with the biblical episode of Jacob’s journey. In the foreground, reading the painting from left to right, we see a caravan composed of animals, including donkeys, dromedaries, goats, dogs and horses and people, women, men and slaves, who carry on their journey along the banks of a river, following a path that to the right, would seem to lead to the through of a bridge. In addition to the watercourse is described an environment characterized by large rocks and impervious come far to cover the entire verticality of the canvas. On the left, in the distance, we see the tail of the caravan that runs along the steep path. Large trees enliven and harmonize the environment, as well as white and grey clouds characterize the predominantly clear sky and illuminated on the right by sunlight. The story is told in the Bible, Book of Genesis, 30, 25, passage in which is described the flight of Jacob from Haran after the contrasts with Laban, father of his wife Rachel. Jacob is the third great patriarch of the Bible. From his descendants originate the twelve generations of the people of Israel. He is the son of Isaac and Rebekah, who led him to flee from the wrath of Esau to Haran to seek refuge from his brother, Laban. At his uncle’s house Jacob met his daughter Rachel. As soon as he saw his cousin, Jacob was taken. Jacob will stay seven years in the service of Laban to marry his beloved Rachel. But Laban, with a deception, will give him in marriage first Lia, the least beautiful eldest daughter, and only after another seven years the splendid Rachel. From his first wife he will have several children, while Rachel will give birth to the beloved son, Joseph, who will become viceroy of Egypt. After years of service, Jacob asked to be paid with every dark-coloured garment among the sheep and every spotted and dotted garment among the goats. Laban accepted and sent away from his sons all the leaders of that kind. So Jacob took fresh branches of poplar, almond and plane tree, and flayed them, and put them in the troughs. The optical suggestion induced the goats and the sheep to conceive and give birth to dark, striped and dotted garments. He also ensured that all the strongest and healthiest leaders of the flock of Laban would drink near the barked branches, thus assuring a genetic superiority to his part of the flock. His flocks grew numerous and strong and he became richer than his relative, arousing envy. It was clear that Laban would not respect him much longer. At the suggestion of the Lord, Jacob decided to return to Canaan. Trying to avoid any possible dispute, he left with his family while Laban was absent for shearing sheep. But when, three days later, his uncle returned home, he became angry, feeling offended because Jacob had gone secretly and had not allowed him to greet his daughters and grandchildren. In addition, his teraphim, statuettes, or idols, which depicted the family deities, had disappeared. After 7 days of pursuit, Laban and his men reached Jacob’s group on Mount Gilead, in the mountainous region west of the Euphrates River, where his uncle and grandson had a stormy conversation. The younger man was outraged at being accused of stealing idols and told Labano to rummage through his family’s tents at will. Neither of them could know or even imagine that it was Rachel who took the idols and hid them in the saddle of the camel. During the search, she sat down firmly on the saddle, apologizing for not being able to get up, «because I usually have what happens to women» (Gen 31:35). So the loot wasn’t discovered. The author of this work was inspired by the composition of an engraving by Stefano Della Bella (1610-1664) of circa 1647. The engraving by Stefano della Bella bears the title "Iacob sur ses vieux jours quitte sans fascherie pour voir son filz Ioseph, sa terre et sa patrie" and is signed on the bottom left "Stef. of the Beautiful In. et fe." while on the right it is declared "Cum privil. Regis", that is with license of the king. Stefano Della Bella (Italy - Florence, May 18, 1610-Florence, July 12, 1664) was born in a family of painters, sculptors and goldsmiths and was left early orphan of his father sculptor, he dedicated himself first to the art of goldsmith at the school of Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione and Gasparo Mola, then turning his attention to drawing and engraving. He soon began drawing figures and copying the etchings of Jacques Callot, which inspired his early works. Under the protection of the Medici, in particular of Don Lorenzo, cadet son of Grand Duke Ferdinand I, Della Bella has the opportunity to make study trips to Rome, where he stayed from 1633-1636; In Rome he met French engravers and publishers of prints such as Israël Henriet and François Langlois, who influenced his decision to move to Paris in 1639, four years after the death of Callot. In Paris he soon reached, thanks to the engravings commissioned by Cardinal Richelieu, the success also worldly; he frequented courtiers, theatre artists and writers, while refusing too oppressive honors. In 1646-1647 he continued his travels in the Netherlands to Amsterdam, Antwerp and Dordrecht. He returned to Florence in 1650 and resumed working under the protection of the Medici court, working for his patrons. In 1656 he became a member of the Academy of Apatists. The painting object of this study is reasonably attributable to Pier Francesco Cittadini, or Pierfrancesco Cittadini, called the Milanese or the Franceschino (Italy - Milan, 1616-Bologna, 1681) as some exemplary stylistic comparisons proposed to follow can prove. Pier Francesco Cittadini was an Italian baroque painter, mainly active in Bologna. His artistic training first took place with the painter Daniele Crespi...

Oil on canvas "Dackelwelpen Biem Spiel" (Dachshund Puppies at Play) by Simon Ludvig Ditlev Simonsen (Danish, 1841-1928) Education: Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts Size (Unframed) 6...

Decorate an office or a study with this elegant antique painting on canvas. Created in Holland circa 1860 and set in the original carved gil...

Enchanting oil on canvas by Carl Emil Doepler, protected by a beautiful hand-carved giltwood frame with a metal label titled "Italian Renaissance Party", depicting a traditional Ital...

Keep a view of Paris in your home with this oil on canvas painting by French painter, Lucien Delarue (circa 1970). Set inside a carved gilt frame, this detailed, architectural painti...

A finely rendered heraldic watercolor on paper depicting an elaborate composite coat of arms, signed lower right “E. Wenzel” and likely executed in the late 19th century. The work pr...

English school oil on canvas portrait dating to the mid-18th century, depicting a finely dressed young gentleman. The subject’s elegant attire and composed expression suggest wealth ...

A 19th Century portrait by Italian artist Fausto Giusto (1867 Naples-1941 Zurich) after a Renaissance painting by Titian entitled "La Bella". An exceptionally detailed portrait by a ...

This is a charming Victorian period reverse painted landscape, offering a brooding aesthetic and period art appeal, dating to circa 1860. This antique oval convex painting is set within an ornate giltwood frame. Fascinating convex oval scene, presenting a delightful sense of depth and perspective Displays a desirable aged patina and in good original order Hand-painted landscape to reverse of glass, redolent of the Continental school Subdued colour palette, set amongst appealing gilt tones Landscape presents a rustic countryside building between small lakes Figural detail, featuring a fisherman and two military men upon the shoreline Ornate giltwood frame, adorned with an acorn motif for decorative elegance Dressed to the rear with mounting wire, allowing for easy wall display This is a superb antique wall...

English 18 century oil on canvas of horse and jockey painting in carved giltwood frame. This 18 th c English oil on canvas beautifully depict...

Thomas Chambers School Oil on Board Landscape Painting, Lake Scene, Unsigned, Framed, C1850 Measures - 18.25" x 24.25" x 3"

A gorgeous Grand Tour style framed oil painting of an Italian Capriccio landscape with ruins Italy, Mid-20th Century Oil on canvas, gilt frame Measures: 9.5"W x 1"D x 9.5"H. Exce...

Decorate an office or study with this large antique oil on canvas painting. Created in France circa 1890, and signed by French artist, E. Laval, the artwork is set in the original ca...

Piedmontese painter of the second half of the 18th century Two "Still Lifes with composition of flowers, fruits and mushrooms" Measurements: Frames: cm W 63 x H 74 x D 8.5 frames...

A Fine Italian 19th Century Oil Painting on Canvas "La Madonna della Seggiola" after Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino 1483-1520). The circular painted canvas depicting a seated Madonna holding an infant Jesus Christ next to a child Saint John the Baptist, all within a massive carved two-tone gilt wood, gilt-patinated and gesso frame, which is identical to the frame on Raphael's original artwork. This painting is a 19th Century copy of Raphael's Madonna della Seggiola painted in 1514 and currently exhibited and part of the permanent collection at the Palazzo Pitti, Galleria Palatina, Florence, Italy. The bodies of the Virgin, Christ, and the boy Baptist fill the whole picture. The tender, natural looking embrace of the Mother and Child, and the harmonious grouping of the figures in the round, have made this one of Raphael's most popular Madonnas. The isolated chair leg is reminiscent of papal furniture, which has led to the assumption that Leo X himself commissioned the painting. Circa: 1890-1900. Subject: Religious painting Painting diameter: 28 inches (71.1 cm) Frame height: 55 1/8 inches (140 cm) Frame width: 46 inches (116.8 cm) Frame depth: 5 1/8 inches (13 cm) Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (Italian, March 28 or April 6, 1483 - April 6, 1520), known as Raphael, was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual achievement of the Neoplatonic ideal of human grandeur. Together with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, he forms the traditional trinity of great masters of that period. Raphael was enormously productive, running an unusually large workshop and, despite his death at 37, leaving a large body of work. Many of his works are found in the Vatican Palace, where the frescoed Raphael Rooms were the central, and the largest, work of his career. The best known work is The School of Athens in the Vatican Stanza della Segnatura. After his early years in Rome much of his work was executed by his workshop from his drawings, with considerable loss of quality. He was extremely influential in his lifetime, though outside Rome his work was mostly known from his collaborative printmaking. After his death, the influence of his great rival Michelangelo was more widespread until the 18th and 19th centuries, when Raphael's more serene and harmonious qualities were again regarded as the highest models. His career falls naturally into three phases and three styles, first described by Giorgio Vasari: his early years in Umbria, then a period of about four years (1504–1508) absorbing the artistic traditions of Florence, followed by his last hectic and triumphant twelve years in Rome, working for two Popes and their close associates. Raphael was born in the small but artistically significant central Italian city of Urbino in the Marche region, where his father Giovanni Santi was court painter to the Duke. The reputation of the court had been established by Federico III da Montefeltro, a highly successful condottiere who had been created Duke of Urbino by the Pope - Urbino formed part of the Papal States - and who died the year before Raphael was born. The emphasis of Federico's court was rather more literary than artistic, but Giovanni Santi was a poet of sorts as well as a painter, and had written a rhymed chronicle of the life of Federico, and both wrote the texts and produced the decor for masque-like court entertainments. His poem to Federico shows him as keen to show awareness of the most advanced North Italian painters, and Early Netherlandish artists as well. In the very small court of Urbino he was probably more integrated into the central circle of the ruling family than most court painters. Federico was succeeded by his son Guidobaldo da Montefeltro, who married Elisabetta Gonzaga, daughter of the ruler of Mantua, the most brilliant of the smaller Italian courts for both music and the visual arts. Under them, the court continued as a centre for literary culture. Growing up in the circle of this small court gave Raphael the excellent manners and social skills stressed by Vasari. Court life in Urbino at just after this period was to become set as the model of the virtues of the Italian humanist court through Baldassare Castiglione's depiction of it in his classic work The Book of the Courtier, published in 1528. Castiglione moved to Urbino in 1504, when Raphael was no longer based there but frequently visited, and they became good friends. He became close to other regular visitors to the court: Pietro Bibbiena and Pietro Bembo, both later cardinals, were already becoming well known as writers, and would be in Rome during Raphael's period there. Raphael mixed easily in the highest circles throughout his life, one of the factors that tended to give a misleading impression of effortlessness to his career. He did not receive a full humanistic education however; it is unclear how easily he read Latin. Early Life and Works His mother Màgia died in 1491 when Raphael was eight, followed on August 1, 1494 by his father, who had already remarried. Raphael was thus orphaned at eleven; his formal guardian became his only paternal uncle Bartolomeo, a priest, who subsequently engaged in litigation with his stepmother. He probably continued to live with his stepmother when not staying as an apprentice with a master. He had already shown talent, according to Vasari, who says that Raphael had been "a great help to his father". A self-portrait drawing from his teenage years shows his precocity. His father's workshop continued and, probably together with his stepmother, Raphael evidently played a part in managing it from a very early age. In Urbino, he came into contact with the works of Paolo Uccello, previously the court painter (d. 1475), and Luca Signorelli, who until 1498 was based in nearby Città di Castello. According to Vasari, his father placed him in the workshop of the Umbrian master Pietro Perugino as an apprentice "despite the tears of his mother". The evidence of an apprenticeship comes only from Vasari and another source, and has been disputed—eight was very early for an apprenticeship to begin. An alternative theory is that he received at least some training from Timoteo Viti, who acted as court painter in Urbino from 1495.Most modern historians agree that Raphael at least worked as an assistant to Perugino from around 1500; the influence of Perugino on Raphael's early work is very clear: "probably no other pupil of genius has ever absorbed so much of his master's teaching as Raphael did", according to Wölfflin. Vasari wrote that it was impossible to distinguish between their hands at this period, but many modern art historians claim to do better and detect his hand in specific areas of works by Perugino or his workshop. Apart from stylistic closeness, their techniques are very similar as well, for example having paint applied thickly, using an oil varnish medium, in shadows and darker garments, but very thinly on flesh areas. An excess of resin in the varnish often causes cracking of areas of paint in the works of both masters. The Perugino workshop was active in both Perugia and Florence, perhaps maintaining two permanent branches. Raphael is described as a "master", that is to say fully trained, in December 1500. His first documented work was the Baronci altarpiece for the church of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino in Città di Castello, a town halfway between Perugia and Urbino. Evangelista da Pian di Meleto, who had worked for his father, was also named in the commission. It was commissioned in 1500 and finished in 1501; now only some cut sections and a preparatory drawing remain. In the following years he painted works for other churches there, including the Mond Crucifixion (about 1503) and the Brera Wedding of the Virgin (1504), and for Perugia, such as the Oddi Altarpiece. He very probably also visited Florence in this period. These are large works, some in fresco, where Raphael confidently marshals his compositions in the somewhat static style of Perugino. He also painted many small and exquisite cabinet paintings in these years, probably mostly for the connoisseurs in the Urbino court, like the Three Graces and St. Michael, and he began to paint Madonnas and portraits. In 1502 he went to Siena at the invitation of another pupil of Perugino, Pinturicchio, "being a friend of Raphael and knowing him to be a draughtsman of the highest quality" to help with the cartoons, and very likely the designs, for a fresco series in the Piccolomini Library in Siena Cathedral. He was evidently already much in demand even at this early stage in his career. Influence of Florence Raphael led a "nomadic" life, working in various centres in Northern Italy, but spent a good deal of time in Florence, perhaps from about 1504. Although there is traditional reference to a "Florentine period...

Figures on a country road with horses. Artist William Darling McKay (1844 - 1924). Scottish. the artist studied in Holland and was influenced by ...

A 19th century French Louis XVI style trumeau mirror with a sepia toned oil painting depicting a pastoral courtship scene. Pale green painted pine frame with gilded border trim. Orig...

Otto Pilny (Swiss, 1866-1936) A very fine orientalist oil on canvas "The Slave Market", depicting a desert scene with the offering of two female slaves. Signed and Dated (l/r): Otto Pilny, 1910. Canvas height: 31 1/2 inches (80 cm). Canvas width: 47 1/4 inches (120 cm). Frame height: 37 inches (94 cm). Frame width: 52 inches (132.1 cm). Previously offered at Christie's New York, 19th Century European Art, Sale 2521 on October 12, 2011, Lot 84. Latest Otto Pilny Sale: Christie's London - The Orientalist Sale including Works from the Najd Collection on 30 March 2021 - Lot 49 "Dance in the Desert" was sold for £100,800 ($138,500) There is not that much information about Otto Pilny who began his artistic education in Prague. Pilny also lived in Vienna and ended up settling in Zurich. Just like Ludwig Deutsch (1855-1935), Rudolf Ernst (1854-1932), and Carl Leopold Müller (1834-1892), Pilny was encouraged to travel abroad. During his two trips to Egypt, a favorite destination of the Austro-Hungarian school, the first one in 1889 and later en 1892, he acquired the taste of painting Orientalist scenes of Middle Eastern landscapes...