Bidspirit auction | Artista napoletano, seconda metà XVII

Artista napoletano, seconda metà XVII secolo - Milizie romane aggrediscono i civili di una città nemica. Oil on canvas cm. 76,5x124. Framed This agitated scene, depicting a group of Roman soldiers attacking several half-naked enemies, reveals a certain influence of the young Poussin ( The Victory of Gideon over the Midianites , Vatican Pinacoteca, Rome) and above all of Aniello Falcone, unmistakably placing the author of the painting within the Neapolitan milieu around the mid-seventeenth century. Unlike these illustrious models, however, the canvas disregards any classicising filter, and the representation unfolds in a chaotic manner, with a clear emphasis on the brutality of the action carried out by the soldiers. The composition even appears to retain traces of late Mannerist influence, in the manner of Belisario Corenzio: a combination of elements that may also be found in more peripheral figures of the Neapolitan artistic scene such as Carlo Coppola and Scipione Compagno. Provenance: Private collection, Rome.