Pier Francesco Mola

Private collection, Florence;

Thereafter acquired.

F. Petrucci, Pier Francesco Mola (1612-1666), Materia e colore nella pittura del '600, Rome 2012, p. 263, cat. no. A33 , reproduced.

Dated by Francesco Petrucci to circa 1650-1655, this work belongs to a group of head studies executed by Pier Francesco Mola after he returned to Rome from his travels across northern Italy alongside the artist Francesco Albani. During his trip he became strongly influenced by the work of his contemporary Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called Guercino, whose influence is palpable in the present work. Specifically, the subdued palette is reminiscent of the soft tones used by this artist in his later years.

Mola’s talent as an artist is evidenced here in the naturalistic rendition and subtle modelling of the sitter’s features, notably in the fine detail of his beard, furrowed brow and distant gaze. The sketchier handling of his robes and hair suggest it may have been conceived as a physiognomic study preparatory to a larger and more complex composition, for example the altarpiece depicting The Sermon of San Barnaba in the Basilica dei Santi Ambrogio e Carlo al Corso, Rome, in which the turbaned figure to the left is reminiscent of this work.¹

¹http://catalogo.fondazionezeri.unibo.it/scheda/opera/49645/Mola%20Pier%20Francesco%2C%20Predica%20di%20san%20Barnaba