Giovanni Battista Salvi called Il Sassoferrato

Exhibited by Altomani & Sons

Material Oil on canvas

Dimensions 91,4 x 71,1 cm

Place of Creation Rome

Status Not Vetted

About the Work

In this magnificent painting, Sassoferrato depicts Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music, exalted in spirituality and purity.

Her gaze is turned upward, symbolizing her relationship with the divine.

The brilliant colors and the drapery of the fabrics, particularly the contrast between emerald green and orange, express a luminosity that gives strength to the figure and lends it an extraordinary softness.

The landscape in the background, with its atmospheric depth and meticulous attention to detail, carries the work beyond simple portraiture, inviting the viewer to a deeper meditation.

Sassoferrato’s painting technique, extremely precise and radiant, captures ideal beauty, conveying a serenity that transports the subject beyond the context of everyday life into a higher spiritual dimension.

Though Raphael is often cited as his greatest influence, the present work takes inspiration from a painting by Domenichino now in the Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi, Rome.

For a deeper dive https://youtu.be/fQI_JPZKXd8

Show moreless

Provenance

Denmark, Rasmussen, Auction;
Paris, Galerie Canesso;
New York, Piero Corsini;
Texas, Jimmy Younger Collection;
New York, Private Collection;
Milan, Private Collection.

Literature

Piero Corsini, Important Old Master Paintings. Within the image, fall exhibition, New York, 1990, pp. 74-77;
Stephen Pepper, "Il Sassoferrato un classique dans la tourmente baroque", in L'estampille et l'objet de l'art, n° 255, 1992, p. 74-81;
C.D. Dickerson, in From the Private Collections of Texas, European Art, Ancient to Modern, exhibition catalogue, R. Bretell and C.D. Dickerson (eds.), New Haven and Fort Worth 2009, p. 160, cat. no. 22, reproduced in color p. 161;
L’Anima silente. Il Sassoferrato e l'eredità di Raffaello, curated by M. Pulini
And A. Marchesin, NFC, 2024, pp. 43-45.
Concerto di Petali, Exhibition catalgue (May 2024), Milano, Altomani & Sons, pp. 18-21.
F. Facchini, M.Pulini, SALVIFICA Il Sassoferrato e Giovanni Manfredini tra pelle e profondo, 2024 Monsano Tipografia bBold, pp.66-69.