Antonio CIFRONDI (1655-1730) and his workshop Woman... Lot 16

Antonio CIFRONDI (1655-1730) and his workshop Woman sewing Canvas. Inscription on reverse. Small accident in the center. 117 x 89 cm The year 2023 was one of consecration for Antonio Cifrondi, who benefited from a monographic exhibition at the Museo Arte Tempo in Clusone. Museo Arte Tempo in Clusone (April 15 - September 3, 2023), the artist having been rehabilitated throughout the 20th century, notably by Roberto Longhi in the exhibition I pittori della realtà in Lombardia in Milan in 1953. Initially a student of Marcantonio Franceschini in Bologna, he then traveled throughout Europe, spending several years in Paris. in Paris. On his return to Lombardy in 1689, he received numerous commissions, between Bergamo and Brescia, for palace decorations, large altarpieces and devotional religious subjects. Today, he is best known for his popular subjects such as La Couseuse, Le Meunier and Le Mendiant These are part of the realist tradition inherited from Caravaggio, Bamboccianti, Michel Sweerts and Le Nain, and continued by Giacomo Ceruti, whom Cifrondi influenced considerably. In contrast to the the genre scenes of the 17th century, he depicts his characters in life-size, so as to best capture them in their everyday truth. everyday truth. The human gaze he brings to his figures, the speed of his brushwork, all belong to the 18th century. Our canvas is a repeat of the famous Couturière in the Tosio Martinengo Pinacoteca in Brescia, reproduced on the cover of the artist's monograph (Paola dal Pogetto, Cifrondi, Bolis, Bergamo, 1982). There are three other replicas (op. cit., p. 607). While the set-up is the same, the framing is slightly less tight in our version, with a little more space on each side, allowing details from below to be seen, such as the mound on which the hen is standing. Variations include a slightly different collar notch, four buttons on the bodice (instead of three in Brescia), the flap hinge in the window is missing here, and the orange sleeves have turned yellow with some red embroidery on them. We thank Professor Angelo Loda for confirming the attribution to Cifrondi and his workshop, by e-mail, on digital photography, June 26, 2023.