Erminia amongst the Shepherds

Oil on canvas

97 x 122 cm.

Framed: 113 x 137 cm.

The painting on display depicts the episode of Erminia amongst the shepherds, one of the most celebrated themes of Baroque art, taken from Canto VII of Torquato Tasso’s poem *Jerusalem Delivered* (VII, 1–22).

In the passage in question, Erminia, Princess of Antioch, who is secretly in love with the Christian hero Tancredi, witnesses her beloved being wounded in a duel and, driven by love, dons the armour of the warrior Clorinda, her close friend, to reach him by night and tend to his wounds.

But at the Christian camp, a ray of moonlight illuminates her and, mistaken for the fearsome Clorinda by the sentries, she is forced to make a hasty escape: she thus arrives at a village on the banks of the River Jordan, inhabited by shepherds who live far from the war in an idyllic and serene atmosphere, whilst all around the war between Christians and Muslims rages; there she asks to be taken in for a while in the vain hope of forgetting her ill-fated love.

Here we see her depicted in the company of an elderly shepherd, who is listening to the music played by his three sons; he confides in her that in his youth he lived for many years at the sumptuous court of Memphis, but that he abandoned it to escape the intrigues and corruption, taking refuge in that poor but utterly serene life.

This passage is one of the most famous in the poem because it introduces the theme of the pastoral idyll: the old man explains to her how a simple life, in contact with nature and free from ambition, protects him from the horrors and destructive passions of the war raging not far away.

The composition is based on a stark visual and emotional contrast, faithful to the structure of Tasso’s poem: Erminia wears armour and a sumptuous helmet; yet her face does not express aggression, but rather a regal grace that shines through despite her disguise.

Our painting, in fact, depicts the moment when the young woman, captivated by this way of life, decides to stay and choose the path of peace, carving the name of her beloved Tancredi and the story of her ill-fated love into the bark of the trees.

The work, of fine pictorial quality, displays a vibrant and luminous brushstroke, fitting seamlessly into the Genoese milieu of the mid-17th century: it is specifically a canvas attributable to the Baroque painter Stefano Magnasco (Genoa, 1635–1674), or to an artist from his workshop, an important exponent of the Genoese Baroque school and father of the famous Alessandro Magnasco (known as ‘il Lissandrino’).

Clearly influenced by masters such as Valerio Castello, to whom he was a pupil, and Domenico Piola, Magnasco’s paintings are distinguished by their strong chiaroscuro contrast, the theatrical expressiveness of the figures and the rich colour of the drapery: the use of bright red colour fields, for example, which we see here in the cloak enveloping the figure of Erminia, was a distinctive feature employed by the painter to lend drama to his epic scenes.

Specifically, the painting perfectly illustrates the stylistic characteristics of his work which, although he trained in Castello’s workshop, is strongly influenced by the Flemish masters who had worked in Genoa; his fluid and luminous brushstrokes, in fact, blend the Genoese tradition with the theatrical compositions and colour choices introduced by Rubens and Van Dyck in Genoa.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The painting is complete with an attractive gilded frame and is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic sheet.

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