Italian school (XVIII) - Sant’Antonio da Padova con Gesù Bambino in gloria

Italian School, 18th Century

“Saint Anthony of Padua with Child Jesus in Glory”

Oil on canvas
18th century, presumably first half
Dimensions: 74 x 60 cm in a later frame
Canvas: 63 x 50 cm

Subject and description

The painting depicts Saint Anthony of Padua with Child Jesus, according to one of the most widespread devotional iconographies of the Baroque and Late Baroque period.
The saint is shown kneeling, wrapped in the broad dark Franciscan habit, with the cord and the rosary hanging on his chest. The head, surrounded by a thin nimbus, is inclined toward the Child, creating an emotionally intense relationship.
The Baby Jesus appears seated on a mass of clouds and leans toward the saint, affectionately wrapping his arm around his neck while Anthony supports him with his arm. The scene is completed at the top by two cherub heads emerging from the clouds.
The luminous background, dominated by warm and golden tones, gives the representation a supernatural character: the earthly space, indicated by the perspectival floor, seems to progressively dissolve into the celestial vision.

Stylistic considerations and dating

The relatively simple construction of the scene, the delicate features of the saint, the soft modeling of the Child, the cherubs immersed in the clouds, and especially the golden luminosity of the backdrop recall a still Baroque artistic culture, but already oriented toward greater devotional sweetness.

An interesting contrast is the chromatic difference between the large almost monochrome mass of the habit and the luminosity of the Child’s flesh. Saint Anthony’s face shows a fairly accurate execution, with large eyes, rosy flesh tones and delicate chiaroscuro transitions.

Support and conservation interventions

The verso clearly documents an important prior conservation intervention.

The original canvas has been relined, with the application of a new support canvas, and subsequently mounted on a modern expansion wooden frame, equipped with corner brackets.

The intervention presumably served to consolidate an original support that showed stability problems or deformations. The current tension of the canvas appears, at least photographically, fairly regular.

Frame

Ebony/black-varnished wooden frame, with a simple yet substantial profile and a wide ovolo
The frame does not appear to be contemporaneous with the painting or has been reworked, and shows normal signs of aging: abrasions, scratches, small knocks, dulling and slight openings at the corners. On the back there are traces and holes referable to previous mounting systems.

Condition report

The work presents overall discrete conservation conditions and has previously undergone a structural relining and replacement/remounting of the frame.

The pictorial surface shows widespread craquelure, more pronounced in the large dark area corresponding to Saint Anthony’s habit. In some areas the craquelure appears lifted or accentuated by the structure of the paint layers; minute losses and pinpoint abrasions are also observable.

***Note on photographic documentation
*** The present frame is included as a courtesy

The photographs of the work were taken with controlled artificial lighting using studio spotlights to improve readability of the painted surface and to allow a more accurate observation of the details, color transitions and the conservation state.

Shipping costs are to be understood as including professional packing and insurance on the value of the work