Auction Closed
January 30, 06:45 PM GMT
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
FRANCESCO FIDANZA
Rome 1747 - 1819 Milan
A MOONLIT MEDITERRANEAN HARBOR WITH A COASTAL TOWER AND FIGURES WATCHING A FIRE
oil on yellow onyx
8⅛ by 9¾ in.; 20.6 by 24.8 cm.
Anonymous sale, Vienna, Dorotheum, 17 October 2007, lot 301;
There acquired.
Francesco Fidanza, a Roman artist who trained under Claude-Joseph Vernet and Charles François Lacroix de Marseilles, chose onyx as his support for this small Mediterranean landscape. A member of the quartz family, this opaque stone allows for light to shine through and is found in a variety of colors. The warm yellowish tone of the present stone brings a luminous undertone to the dramatically lit scene, and its sleek surface grants a smooth and detailed brushstroke. We are grateful to Nicola Spinosa for endorsing this attribution on the basis of photographs.
