Paolo de Matteis (1662 – 1728), Workshop of - Madonna col Bambino

Scuola di PAOLO DE MATTEIS
(Piano Vetrale, 1662 – Napoli, 1728)
Madonna with Child
Oil on canvas, cm. 78.5 x 64
Frame size cm. 102 x 87 x 8 approx.

NOTE: Publication catalog of the Intermidiart collection (pdf). Untouched work. Certificate of Guarantee and Legitimate Provenance. Work with black and gold lacquered frame (defects):

The work, previously attributed by the market to the school of Sebastiano Conca (Gaeta, 1680 – Naples, 1764), examines one of the most celebrated and intimate iconographies of late Baroque Marian devotion: the Virgin Mary captured in half-length as she tenderly rocks the Baby Jesus to sleep, resting his head on the mother's chest.
From a stylistic point of view, the canvas fully fits within the Neapolitan school of the early eighteenth century, showing a close dependence on the formal and compositional models of Paolo de Matteis. The graceful contour of the figures, the characteristic softly idealized profile of the Madonna – with half-closed eyes and cheeks reddened by a gentle coloristic – and the rendering of the Child directly recall the stylistic signature of the Cilento master, who knew how to fuse the grandeur of Luca Giordano's teaching with the Roman classicism (Maratta).
The anonymous author demonstrates having assimilated the peculiar modulation of light typical of de Matteis' area: the darkness of the background enhances the volumetric plasticity of the bodies through a soft, sfumato chiaroscuro, which gracefully models the silky drapery of the Virgin's blue mantle and the ochre-gold veil that encircles her head. The intimate emotional content and the fluid painting technique, attentive to restituting devotional affections with sober yet theatrical elegance, suggest the paternity of a workshop or a skilled follower active in Naples (like a young Antonio Sarnelli, known for perpetuating such compositions during the century), operating within the line of fortunate graphic and pictorial prototypes approved by de Matteis between the first and second decades of the eighteenth century.
A similar replica to ours was recently auctioned in Naples and attributed to the catalog of Sarnelli by the art historian Prof. Stefano Causa.
Antonio Sarnelli (Naples, 1712 – 1800) was a prominent figure of late Baroque Neapolitan painting of the eighteenth century. Member of an active artistic dynasty that included brothers Gennaro and Giovanni, he began his training as a favored student in Paolo de Matteis' workshop. From the latter he assimilated the drawing elegance, formal composure, and the expressive sweetness of the figures, elements that Sarnelli later reworked, also looking toward the classicism of Francesco De Mura and the great Luca Giordano tradition.
Actively independent since 1731, he established himself as a prolific and appreciated interpreter of devotional and Marian painting. Thanks to a communicative, solid, and graceful style, he earned wide acclaim from ecclesiastical patrons, leaving a rich series of altarpieces and decorative cycles widely spread in Naples, Campania and several provinces of the Kingdom (in particular Calabria and Apulia).
The painting is embellished by a beautiful black and gold lacquered wooden frame (dimensions cm. 102 x 87 x 8 approx., with defects). "The frame shown in the photos above has been added to the artwork by the seller or by a third party. The frame is provided at no additional cost so that it is ready for display as soon as it arrives. The frame is included as a courtesy and is not considered an integral part of the artwork. Therefore, any potential damage to the frame that does not affect the artwork itself will not be accepted as a valid reason to open a claim or request order cancellation."

PROVENANCE: Private Sicilian Collection

PUBLICATION:
 INEDITA QUADRERIA, General Catalog of the paintings of the Intermidiart Gallery collection by Andrea Maggio, 2026 (pdf).

The work will be shipped – being fragile – with a wooden crate and polystyrene or trusted carrier. In the case of sale outside the Italian territory, the buyer must wait for the export procedures to be completed.