Mystical marriage of Saint Catherine of Alexandria

Oil painting on canvas

cm. 124 x 97 - in a fine antique frame cm.158 x 132

The work is accompanied by a critical study drawn up by prof. Emilio Negro (Bologna)

Catherine, the erudite princess of Alexandria who lived in the third century, is depicted here in the best known episode about her, or her "Mystical Marriage", symbolized by the wedding ring that Christ Child is about to place in the her hand. It is an iconography that was born in the fifteenth century and in many cases preferred over the more bloody martyrdom of the Saint with the wheel, and which served for a long time to visually translate the spiritual union of the faithful with God into a delicate allegory.

The status of the bride of Jesus is testified by the sumptuous dress and the magnificence of the jewels worn, including a crown that collects the hairstyle, emblem of her royal dignity, a necklace that surrounds her neck and a precious brooch placed on the neckline. of the dress.

Two sumptuous winged angels attend the scene who enliven the scene with their instruments, a lute and a cello, while a curious little cherub watches in flight from above, supporting a cloth of clear Veronesian ancestry.

With regard to the stylistic canons of this beautiful composition, it is essential to point out that we are dealing with a work executed between the second half of the sixteenth century and the early seventeenth century, in which there are deep-rooted relationships with the pictorial examples of the Carraccis; the warm colors, the chromatic range is soft, the confident and detailed brushstrokes, are elements that, combined with the reminiscences of the Bolognese culture, lead us to place this valuable painting, both as regards the composition and the characters that outline the figures, in the flourishing production of the prestigious Carracci workshop.

In particular - according to the judgment of Professor Negro - it is possible to register the authorship in the bed of the production of Francesco Brizio (Bologna 1574-1623). After an apprenticeship alongside Bartolomeo Passerotti, Brizio will in fact bond with the Carraccis and in particular with Ludovico's classicism, whose full trust will be guaranteed, inheriting the management of the shop during his numerous Roman journeys.

With regard to our painting, the analogies with the resembling compositions by Brizio are different, since in the interesting painting in question neo-mannerist cadences, clear obeisances to Venetian luminism and physiognomic characterizations derived from the first works of the Bolognese masters Lucio Massari and Guido Reni stand out, evident in the features of the sacred characters.

It should be remembered that the same composition, deriving from a lost painting by Veronese (fig. 1), was reproduced by Agostino Carracci during a stay in Venice and then replicated in his workshop in different variations.

Picture 1: Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine, Carracci Agostino

To confirm the advanced attribution, it will be sufficient to compare the painting in question with other works by Brizio, for example the canvases with the Holy Family and the Saints Anna and Giovannino (Bedonia, Episcopal Seminary), the Madonna and Child, Saint Francis and a Saint martyr (New York, Sotheby's, 26 January 2006, n.43) or the Idolatry of Solomon (Florence, Semenzato Finarte 11 June 2003, n.173). All the paintings mentioned show clear and not accidental stylistic analogies with our altarpiece, in which a careful painting is highlighted, steeped in an icy mindset and with a precise desire to recover the Bolognese Mannerist and Carraccesque figurative culture: typical qualities of the works best performed by Francesco Brizio.

The canvas is in excellent condition. Complete with antique frame.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The work is sold with a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic card.

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