Giovanni Odazzi

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has a very old lining and a patch has been applied to the reverse on the lower center. The only restorations appear to be faintly visible under ultraviolet light to the immediate right of Christ's right knee where there is a hole which has been patched on the reverse of the canvas. Above the head of the saint there is another small restoration. Apart from this the condition seems to be noticeably good and if the paint layer were to be cleaned, more brightness would be acquired. The patch in the lower center has created an uneven surface and some effort may be required to correct this.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Giovanni Odazzi first trained under Pietro da Cortona's pupil Ciro Ferri but he went on to fully assimilate the style of his second master Giovanni Battista Gaulli, called il Baciccio, to whom this painting was formerly attributed. Odazzi's classicism owes much to Carlo Maratta but Gaulli remained the principal source of inspiration throughout his career and this painting, in particular, could not have been conceived without a knowledge of Gaulli's art: the pure colours, the agitated draperies of the figures, and the landscape in which they find themselves are all reminiscent of the older artist's work. Odazzi must certainly have looked at Gaulli's painting of the same subject, datable to a few years earlier (circa 1675), now in a Genoese private collection.¹ Both works ultimately depend on Annibale Carracci's Domine Quo Vadis? in the National Gallery, London, and the position of the figures within the picture space is similar in both Gaulli and Odazzi's representations: Christ is shown walking and pointing outwards while Saint Peter kneels with his back to the viewer, an artistic device that serves to heighten the drama.

The attribution to Odazzi was first proposed on the basis of photographs by Dott. Francesco Petrucci, to whom we are grateful. Dott. Petrucci has suggested a possible dating of this painting to 1690-95, around the same time as Odazzi's frescoes depicting King David, The Adoration of the Magi, and The Flight into Egypt, painted for the church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli, Rome, and completed in 1691.²

1  Oil on canvas, 156 by 116 cm.; Aldo Zerbone collection, Genoa: see F. Petrucci, in M. Fagiolo dell'Arco, D. Graf & F. Petrucci, Giovan Battista Gaulli, Il Baciccio 1639-1709, exhibition catalogue, Ariccia, Palazzo Chigi, December 11, 1999 - March 12, 2000, pp. 206-7, cat. no. 48, reproduced in colour. The painting is also reminiscent of Gaulli's Noli Me Tangere, also in a Genoese private collection (for which see F. Petrucci, Il Baciccio un anno dopo. La collezione Chigi, restauri e nuove scoperte, exhibition catalogue, Milan, 2001, p. 47, cat. no. 10, reproduced).
2  The Adoration of the Magi and The Flight into Egypt are reproduced in G. Sestieri, Repertorio della Pittura Romana della fine del Seicento e del Settecento, Turin 1994, vol. III, figs. 827 and 828.