Master Paintings and 19th Century European Art
Master Paintings and 19th Century European Art
Pietro Paolini
Young man playing a lute by candlelight
Auction Closed
May 25, 07:43 PM GMT
Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
Pietro Paolini
Lucca 1603 - 1681
Young man playing a lute by candlelight
signed on neck of the lute: P L P
oil on canvas
canvas: 29 ½ by 39 ½ in.; 74.9 by 100.3 cm.
framed: 37 by 46 ⅜ in.; 94.0 by 117.8 cm.
With Fabrizio Moretti, London;
From whom acquired by a private collector, New York;
From whom acquired by the present collector.
Though Tuscan by birth, Paolini trained in Rome, where he absorbed the influence of the many northern painters who flocked to the city in order to study the works of Caravaggio. In this late work, the hidden light source casts a dramatic shadow on the lute-player's face and imbues the scene with a sense of nocturnal mystery.
We are grateful to Professor Nikita de Vernejoul for her assistance cataloguing this work, which will be included in her forthcoming catalogue raisonné on the artist.