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Plays of Putti
Oil o…
See original version (Italian)
FRANCESCO DE MURA (Naples, 1696 - 1782)
Plays of Putti
Oil o…
See original version (Italian)
Lot no. 39
Description
FRANCESCO DE MURA
(Naples, 1696 - 1782)
Plays of Putti
Oil on canvas, 62.5 x 89 cm
Provenance:
Private collection
Francesco De Mura was the favourite pupil of Francesco Solimena and the main interpreter of Neapolitan Rococo during the reign of Charles of Bourbon. Idealistic and devoid of dramatic tension, his art expresses a modulated classicism, which led him to create elegant images, figures in solemn attitudes and peculiar genre scenes. The pleasantness of his creations springs from graphic layouts and colours that evoke vitality and movement, especially when he deals with large surfaces whose results are the fruit of countless studies, in which the artist not only designs the choreography, but also measures the light and colour. The result can also be seen in the canvases under scrutiny, in which the desire to make his creations softer and lighter is evident in the subtle chiaroscuro transitions and the use of illuminated and precious chromatic materials. This expressive openness to Solimena's dictates occurred after 1740, when De Mura came into contact with the court of Savoy and his rocaille and Frenchising culture was best expressed in the frescoes of the Royal Palace in Naples, where he depicted pastoral tales in the manner of Metastasio and the stories of Achilles and Theseus in cultured and refined tones. In this regard, it must also be remembered how this elegant gracefulness, drawing grace and colours capable of evoking vitality and movement to the figures is illustratively accompanied by the coeval production of Capodimonte porcelain, and the similarity with the frescoes painted on the vault of the Nunziatella in 1751 suggest a later date, around 1760. Other useful comparisons for understanding the works under examination are the similar compositions that the author executed for the Reggia di Caserta and the putti games published by Riccardo Lattuada kept at the Italian Consulate in New York.
We thank Riccardo Lattuada for the attribution.
Reference bibliography:
N. Spinosa, Pittura napoletana del Settecento, dal Barocco al Rococò, Naples 1993, I, pp. 50-51
R. Lattuada, in Casa di Re. Un secolo di storia alla Reggia di Caserta, Exhibition catalogue edited by R. Cioffi (Caserta, 8 December 2004 ; 13 March 2005), Milan 2004, I, pp. 106, 109, 114-119, 285-286, 2.13; 286, 2.14-2.16
R. Lattuada, Nuove opere di Francesco de Mura nel Consolato Generale italiano a New York e altrove, e qualche riflessione sul patrimonio artistico nelle sedi di rappresentanza italiane all'estero, in Storia dell'arte come impegno civile. Writings in honour of Marisa Dalai Emiliani, Rome 2015, pp. 257-267
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