Giacomo Ceruti Milan 1698 - 1767

We are grateful to Dr. Mina Gregori who has seen the present works first hand and supports their attribution to Ceruti.  She considers them:

"magnifiche, impressionanti, imprevedibili e innovative nel panorama europeo del XVII secolo e spettanti inequivocabilmente al Ceruti , come si può rilevare da confronti stringenti con altri dipinti che contengono gli stessi oggetti rappresentati.  La presenza del cesto è equivalente ad una firma.  Questi dipinti preparano per l’evidenza ottica che magnifica gli oggetti le nature di Meléndez.  Formatosi in Italia il pittore spagnolo dovette conoscere queste nature morte del Ceruti."¹

She discussed the pair of paintings in a colloquium, “Giornata per la natura morta” on 17 December 2005, and will be publishing her comments in an article in a forthcoming issue of Paragone.  The two present still lifes present a close connection with the Kitchen Interiors (published by A. Crispo, op. cit., figs. 1-2, see also introduction in the previous pages) which themselves are related to the still life elements present in the Cook and Porter (see M. Gregori, Ceruti, Milan, 1982, fig. 187, see also introduction in the previous pages), comparisons which further support Gregori's opinion. 

1 [Trans: magnificent, impressive, unexepected and innovative in the European panorama of the 18th Century, and unquestionably belonging to Ceruti, as may be discerned by the close comparison with other paintings that contain the same objects.  The presence of the basket is equivalent to a signature.  These paintings laid the ground for the visual clarity that exalts the objects in the still lifes of Melendez.   Having been trained in Italy, the Spanish painter must have known such still lifes by Ceruti]."