Seguace di Boccaccio Boccaccino (XIX), Follower of - Sposalizio mistico di Santa Caterina

Follower of the 19th century, from a painting by Boccaccio Boccaccino (Ferrara, before 1466 – Cremona, 1525)
Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine
Oil on canvas, 77 x 136 cm
With frame, 100 x 163 cm

Our painting conforms to an nineteenth-century replica of a famous portrait by the Cremonese painter Boccaccio Boccaccino, the Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine, currently housed in the collections of the Gallerie dell’Accademia in Venice. The Accademia painting by Boccaccio Boccaccino, painted around 1506 during his second stay in Venice, is signed by the artist on the cartouche at the bottom right. The painting depicts the traditional theme of Saint Catherine’s mystical marriage to the Child Jesus, i.e., the dream vision in which the saint mystically weds Christ. The scene is witnessed by Saint Rosa – identified by some as Saint Lucia –, Peter and John the Baptist. Stylistically, the work reveals a clear debt to the pastoral lyricism of Giorgione’s painting, a major reference for the Venetian period of Boccaccino’s activity. The autumnal landscape, though recalling Vittore Carpaccio’s Saint Mary Magdalen, blends harmoniously with the figures thanks to a tonal device that calls to mind Giorgione’s The Three Philosophers. The background is rich in narrative details: to the left one glimpses the annunciation to the shepherds and the flight into Egypt, while to the right appear the flight into Egypt and the Magi’s march. Boccaccino draws on multiple inspirations: the female faces recall the physiognomies of Raphael and Bramantino, the Child Jesus and Saint Peter show Bellini influences, and the Baptism of Christ recalls that of Cima da Conegliano. The horizontal composition, almost paratactic, uses the Leonardo-inspired pyramidal scheme to focus attention on the Virgin with the Christ Child, who seem to detach themselves from the nearby saints. Finally, the outdoor setting, the airy arrangement and the careful definition of precious fabrics interrupted by rigid draperies recall Dürer’s Feast of the Rosary, a work created for the main altar of the church of Saint Bartholomew precisely in the summer of 1506. This masterpiece by Boccaccino not only testifies to his skill but also to his ability to integrate diverse artistic influences into a unique synthesis. Boccaccio Boccaccino was an important Italian painter of the Renaissance, active from the late 15th century to the first quarter of the 16th century. His artistic career unfolded mainly between the duchies of Milan and Ferrara and the city of Venice, where he was one of the most significant interpreters of the Giorgionesque manner. Born in Ferrara, his earliest artistic experiences are poorly documented, but already in the last decade of the Quattrocento Boccaccino enjoyed consolidated fame, working in several northern Italian cities, including Genoa (where in 1493 he painted a Madonna today lost). In 1497 he is attested in Cremona, a city that would become the center of his activity. Subsequently he was also in Milan, where he seems to have been elected court painter. With the beginning of the Cinquecento, his production shows Emilian influences, classical tones derived from Lorenzo Costa and Francesco Francia, and Milanese influences from Bernardo Zenale, Giovan Antonio Boltraffio and Bramantino. However, Boccaccino proves particularly sensitive to Venetian innovations, absorbing the “maniera grande” of Giovanni Bellini and Giorgione, as can be seen in the Adoration of the Magi (now at Capodimonte) and in several Madonna and Child paintings. A stay in Venice in 1506 was crucial for his artistic maturation, where he further assimilated the pastoral lyricism and tonal fusion typical of Giorgione. Subsequently, after a period in Rome around 1514, Boccaccino was among the first to disseminate an early “Raffaellism” and the portrait sensitivity of Sebastiano del Piombo, bringing these influences back to the Po Valley painting.
Luigi Lanzi called him “the best modern among the ancients, and the best ancient among the moderns,” underscoring his ability to innovate while maintaining a link with tradition. Boccaccino opened a workshop in Cremona, where artists such as Benvenuto Tisi, called Il Garofalo, and his son Camillo Boccaccino trained. Among his best-known works are Zingarella (Florence, Uffizi Gallery), Adoration of the Shepherds (Naples, National Museum of Capodimonte), The Way to Calvary (London, National Gallery), and Madonna and Child with Bird (Milan, Brera Art Gallery).

The frame is provided as a compliment, therefore it cannot be a reason for return or complaint.

For paintings purchased abroad: after payment, the procedure to obtain an export license (ALC) will be started. All antique pieces sent abroad from Italy require this document, issued by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage. The procedure could take 3 to 5 weeks from the request, so as soon as we have the document the painting will be shipped.”