Giovanni Serritelli (1818–1891) - Moines et marchands à Sorrente

Giovanni Serritelli (1818–1891)

Monks and merchants in Sorrento (Italy)

Oil on a very pretty cabinet format, with a great richness of composition: five figures, detailed costumes, sacred/popular scene, marine background).
On this small surface (22 × 16 cm), the fineness of Serritelli's work is remarkable: expressions of the monks, details of the basket, delicacy of the rocks and the marine landscape in the background.

1. The Artist: Giovanni Serritelli (1818–1891)

An Italian painter born and died in Naples, Giovanni Serritelli is a figure of genre painting and Neapolitan landscape painting of the 19th century. He is part of the well-known Posillipo School (influenced notably by Anton Sminck van Pitloo).

2. Style and artistic characteristics

Neapolitan school of the 19th century: Serritelli is mainly known for his vedute of the Bay of Naples, Sorrento, Amalfi and Capri, combining bright landscapes with lively scenes of Italian daily life. Here he explores one of his favorite themes.
The painting combines the taste for coastal scenery with the picturesque representation of popular and customary scenes.

Signature.
The signature “Serritelli” is clearly visible at the bottom right of the composition.

Composition and light: The composition opposes the dark rocky mass on the right to the luminous opening onto the sea on the left. The Mediterranean light brightly illuminates the costumes and faces of the figures.

3. Description of the scene

The painting depicts a lively genre scene situated on a rocky promontory. It offers a picturesque view of the sea (presumably the Neapolitan coastline, Sorrento, or the Amalfi coast).

In the foreground on the left: two Francisan monks dressed in brown habit are seated on a stone parapet or bench. One holds a letter or document, while the other listens, pensive.
In the center: a couple of local peasants in traditional Italian costume. The man, kneeling, shows a large piece of cloth or shawl unfolded from a wicker basket. The woman, wearing a white bodice and a red apron, points to a painting, a sacred image, or an inscription engraved in the rock.

In the background on the right: a crucifix / wooden cross is visible at the foot of which a pilgrim is kneeling.
In the distance: the blue sea stretches to the horizon under a bright sky, flanked by cliffs typical of the Gulf of Naples or the Amalfi coast.

In the Grand Tour era of the 19th century, these small formats were particularly popular with wealthy travelers who wished to take home a refined souvenir, carefully painted and easy to transport from their sojourn on the Neapolitan coast.

4. Frame and condition

Frame: the painting is presented in a moulded and gilded wooden frame of period or classical style with an ovolo/godron motif, which nicely highlights the tiny format of the miniature/painting.
Condition: The painting shows an authentic charm with a light antique patina.

Cabinet-format works easily integrate into private collections.
The existence of a support on oil on cardboard (or canvas on cardboard / flat cardboard panel) is very interesting and perfectly coherent with the practice of Neapolitan painters of the second half of the 19th century.
The Grand Tour artists and the Posillipo School especially appreciated cardboard for its lightness and rigidity during plein air painting sessions or to create small works intended for rapid sale to travelers.

Careful packaging and insured shipment for this rare work.