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Portrait of a Sibyl

Original Late 17th/Early 18th Century Oil Painting on Panel

follower of Carlo Dolci (1616 - 1686)

This Painting

A very fine Italian Baroque oil painting depicting a Sibyl in portrait by a follower of one of the finest painters of sacred themes of the Baroque period, Carlo Dolci.  The composition and detail of this painting is simply first class.  The extraordinary quality of this painting simply cannot be fully appreciated from the photographs.  The painting is in fine original condition largely free of restoration, it has been recently cleaned.  The painting is presented in an inappropriate modern giltwood frame, the main photograph shows the painting in a more suitable frame which is not included in this sale.

Carlo Dolci was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in Florence.  He was born and died in Florence, the grandson of a painter on his mother's side. While he was precocious and apprenticed at a young age with Jacopo Vignali, Dolci was not prolific. It is said that in 1682, when he saw Giordano, nicknamed "fa presto" (~quick), paint more in five hours than he could have completed in months, he fell into depression."He would take weeks over a single foot", according to biographer Baldinucci. This painstaking technique made him unsuited for large-scale fresco painting. He used pencil chiefly for sacred subjects, and generally painted in a small size, although he made a few life-size pictures. His daughter, Agnese Dolci, showed excellence in copying the works of her father.  Dolci works are easily distinguishable by the detail of the composition. Pilkington declared: "His touch inexpressibly neat, and ... though he has often been censured for the excessive labour bestowed on his pictures, and for giving his carnations more of the appearance of ivory than the look of flesh", a flaw that had been already apparent in Agnolo Bronzino.  The grand manner, vigorous coloration or luminosity, and dynamic emotion of the Bolognese-Roman Baroque are foreign to Dolci and Baroque Florence. While he fits into a long tradition of prestigious official Florentine painting, Dolci appears constitutionally blind to the new aesthetic, shackled by the Florentine tradition that holds each drawn figure under a microscope of academicism. Wittkower describes him as the Florentine counterpart, in terms of devotional imaging, of the Roman Sassoferrato.  Dolci was notoriously pious; it is said that during Passion week every year, he painted a half-figure of the Saviour wearing the Crown of Thorns. His masterpieces are about sacred themes, where the protagonist is often highly emotive, somewhat over-wrought. There is a want of character in his pictures, and his grouping lacks harmony, but the general tone accords with the idea of the passion portrayed.  Among the best works of this master are the St Sebastian; the Four Evangelists at Florence; Christ Breaking the Bread; the St Cecilia; an Adoration of the Magi; and a masterpiece is his St Andrew praying before his Crucifixion (1646) in the Pitti gallery. He completed his portrait of Fra Ainolfo de' Bardi, when he was 16 years old. He also painted a large altarpiece (1656) for the church of Sant' Andrea Cennano in Montevarchi. As was not atypical for Florentine painters, it was a painting about painting - and has the Virgin of Soriano upholding a miraculous and iconic painting of the St. Dominic.

Dolci's paintings are rare and highly sought after, making tens of thousands of pounds at auction.  To view results please click the following link;

• http://www.findartinfo.com/search/listprices~keyword~83353~name~Carlo_Dolci.asp

To view paintings in Museums and Public Art Galleries please clck the following ink;

• http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/dolci_carlo.html

Measurements:

Painting -        34cm (13.25") x 30cm (11.75")

Frame  -         44cm (17.25") x 40cm (15.75")

If you wish to discuss this painting or to pay by card please call 0870 8635808.

Please Note; The main photograph shows the painting presented in a fine ornate giltwood frame, the painting is in fact presented in a modern frame.

We expect payment to be sent within 48 hours of the end of the sale unless we have previously agreed otherwise.

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