PAINTINGS ONLINE | ANCIENT AND CONTEMPORARY ART GALLERY

Sketch for the costumes of "Aida", 1974

Charcoal on paper. Signed and dated lower right, with the name of the character (the King in Act I). Accompanied by a photo-certificate from the General Catalogue and Archive of the artist's works. It is the work of the prominent Italian painter Remo Brindisi, whose painting, based on a descriptive and realistic approach in his early works, added expressionist nuances in his later works, giving rise to his own neo-figurative language. His work is always imbued with social and political intentions. Brindisi also worked as a sculptor, illustrator, writer, set designer, and cultural curator. His collaboration on the grandiose sets and costumes for the 1974 production of Aida at the Verona Arena was particularly noteworthy; a sketch for the character of the King is presented here. The work is presented in a frame.

Last Night of Mussolini and Claretta

Drawing on paper. The drawing is signed lower left, the letter is signed and dated. This is a unique letter written by Brindisi to a friend in 1961, in which he recounts his struggle to work on a series of works on fascism, which he created between 1960 and 1961. The letter is accompanied by a drawing, a sketch for the large-scale work "Last Night of Claretta Petacci and Mussolini" (oil on canvas, 180 x 200 cm), in which faces are grotesquely transfigured to represent historical horror. It is the work of the prominent Italian painter Remo Brindisi, whose painting, based on a descriptive and realistic approach in his early works, added expressionist nuances in his later works, giving rise to his own neo-figurative language. His work is always imbued with social and political intent. Brindisi also worked as a sculptor, illustrator, writer, set designer, and cultural curator. It comes from a private collection in Milan. In frame.

Painted ceramics. In the 1970s, the Milanese company "Ceramica Fiori Oscuri" created a series of plates decorated with exclusive designs by ten contemporary painters. The series was limited to 250 pieces. The artists involved were: Gianfilippo Usellini, Domenico Cantatore, Domenico Purificato, Remo Brindisi, Gino Meloni, Virgilio Guidi, Pompeo Borra, Roberto Crippa, Franco Gentilini, and Gianni Dova. All plates bear the artist's signature on the front and the company logo and serial number on the back. In this group, the plates bear different serial numbers, and in particular, the plates with designs by Gianni Dova and Gianfilippo Usellini bear the words "Prova di colore" on the back, indicating that the copy was made before the final print, which was later confirmed for the plate signed by Dova, while Usellini subsequently chose another of his subjects. Borra's plate shows a small trace of restoration at the top; Crippa's plate has been reglued.

Handwritten and autographed letter by the artist, dated 1951. The letter is addressed to Gino Ghiringhelli, founder of the historic Il Milione art gallery in Milan. In this letter, Rosai tells the gallery owner the titles of his paintings to be reproduced in the catalog, drawing sketches to match the title and date of production. In the composition presented here, the collector from whom the work originates has combined the letter with the cover and pages of the catalog with the aforementioned reproductions. The composition is presented in a frame.

Female Portrait

Oil on canvas. Signed lower left. Portrait of a young commoner, wrapped in a yellowish floral shawl, which illuminates the otherwise rather serious figure against the dark background. Neapolitan painter Nicola Biondi specialized in genre paintings and portraits of popular figures. The painting is presented in an early 20th-century frame, with some minor loss of gilding.

Sketch for the costumes of "Aida", 1974

Charcoal on paper. Signed and dated lower right, with the name of the sitter (for Amneris). Accompanied by a photo-certificate from the General Catalogue and Archive of the artist's works. This work is by the prominent Italian painter Remo Brindisi, whose painting, based on a descriptive and realistic approach in his early works, added expressionist nuances in his later works, giving rise to his own neo-figurative language. His work is always imbued with social and political intentions. Brindisi also worked as a sculptor, illustrator, writer, set designer, and cultural curator. His collaboration on the grandiose sets and costumes for the 1974 production of Aida at the Verona Arena was particularly noteworthy; a sketch for Princess Amneris is presented here. The work is presented in a frame.

Horse in a 1950s Landscape

Marker on rice paper, glued to cardboard. Signed at the bottom. Below is a dedication from the artist (Greetings dear - Aligi). The work is accompanied by a photo certificate from the Sassu Foundation, archive number PNV49. The protagonist of this drawing is once again the horse, the artist's favorite animal. He was fascinated by the energy and dynamic strength of these animals, which represented life itself and freedom, which Sassu expressed through the twisting of their figures. Sassu's works, which include painting, sculpture, and ceramics, showcase the power of horses in scenes of racing, battles, or immersed in nature, often with an emphasis on dynamism and plastic energy. Framed work.

Cat, 1969

Pencil on paper. Signed and dated at the top, with the location Rome. The drawing was part of a letter Gentilini signed to Elena Pelizzoni as a receipt for the deposit for a three-color drawing for a ceramic plate that would be part of the series later produced by the "Ceramica Fiori Oscuri" group with the collaboration of contemporary artists. A photocopy of the entire letter is attached. The drawing comes from a private collection in Milan. Framed.

Wood Landscape with Figures, 1883

Oil on canvas. Signed and dated lower right. The landscape depicts a stream flowing through a shady coniferous forest; two boys are fishing with rural tools. The atmosphere is filled with light filtering through the thick, green trees. Tristan Lacroix distinguished himself for his naturalist style of painting and rural realism, which focused on the simple life and landscapes of everyday life. The painting is presented in a contemporary gilded frame.

Oil on canvas. Lacroix's signature is at the bottom left. On the beach, the fisherman, having pulled his boat ashore and rolled up the sails, which his companion carries on her shoulders, is offering his fresh catch to a woman equipped with a unique water transport and accompanied by a child. The work is naturalistic and realistic, offering a glimpse of rural life rich in detail and particulars, both in the figures and in the landscape and surrounding elements on the beach. It is presented in a period frame.

Still Life with Birds

Oil on canvas. Signed lower left. French painter Charles Monginot became known for his still lifes and genre scenes, with recurring references to the world of hunting, as in this work. His works are characterized by intense realism and vivid colors, which often emerge from dark backgrounds. The work is presented in a contemporary gilded frame.

Oil on panel. Northern European school, late 19th century. Inside a large, bare, yet bright, room with arched vaults, two men are playing dice; on a table to the side are their capes and hats, and beneath it a drum: it was probably a rest stop for soldiers and drummers. On the back of the work is a cartouche of participation in the 1892 Exposition Versaillese. The work is presented in a contemporary frame, with minor losses.

Child on Horseback

Oil on canvas. Signed MAGO lower right. Maurizio Goracci, aka Mago, is a Roman painter of figurative subjects, with figures that, though well-defined, are always set against a surreal background, shaded in acidic palettes, lending a sense of the fantastic. A recurring theme is a figure on horseback, this time a child, whose face and extremities are recognizable, while the entire body, as well as the horse's silhouette, are covered in bright, floral fabrics, standing out against the undefined, dark background. The work is presented in a frame.

Landscape with Figures and Cattle

Oil on canvas. The work, signed Sorolla lower right and dated 1928, harks back to the style of Joaquim Sorolla y Bastida (1863-1923), the renowned Valencian painter who chose to reflect the Mediterranean light in the everyday scenes of his city, in a unique style known as luminism. His works are characterized by their plein air painting, depicting simple people often framed in fishing and sea scenes, capturing customs and traditions, as well as the freedom with which they reflect light and color. In particular, the urban beaches of Valencia, animated by numerous figures, including bathers and others, were a recurring setting in many of his paintings. In this work, the scene is indeed that of a beach, where figures with some cattle pass by, while beached boats and bathers can be glimpsed in the background. The work, which is effectively pictorial, despite being very close to Sorolla's manner and style, is not recognized as authentic by the artist's official archive. It is presented in a period frame.

Oil on canvas. 19th-century Northern European school. In the scene, set on a barren, snow-covered plain with a frozen river flowing through it, a large horse-drawn sleigh is parked on the bank, carrying several people: a woman with a child in her arms is preparing to climb aboard, watched by the driver, while another female figure, holding her child by the hand, walks away across the ice. It looks like a Nordic public transport stop! The work is presented in a late-19th-century frame, which has several missing or damaged parts.

Still Life, 1976

Oil on hardboard. Signed and dated lower right. On the back is a label with the artist's stamps, detailing the work. A Parma-born artist who also lived in Milan for many years, Proferio Grossi created numerous still lifes, paintings of objects in which he sought an aesthetic sense, which he alternated with abstract painting. This composition also belongs to the figurative style, a linear and orderly composition, both in the placement of the objects and in the color choices, of everyday objects indicative of peasant life. The work is presented in a frame.

Oil on metal plaque. Delicate portrait of a child, presented in a contemporary embossed and gilded metal frame.

River Landscape with Figures

Oil on canvas. Signed lower right. Ivan Karpoff, of Russian origin but raised and established as an artist in Italy, gained recognition for his paintings, which oriented themselves toward the Italian Impressionist realism of the late 19th century; he devoted himself primarily to landscapes and portraits. In this work, he depicts a glimpse of flat countryside crossed by a wide river; a woman and her child walk along the path that runs alongside it. Framed.

Landscape with Figures 1929

Oil on panel. Signed and dated lower right. Luigi Comolli, a Milanese artist, distinguished himself for his landscape and still life paintings. His work displays an Impressionist influence, drawn from his formative years in Paris. The work is presented in a contemporary gilded frame.

Porch with Figures

Oil on cardboard. Signed upper right. Gregorio Mariani is best known for his engravings of Roman antiquities, but he also established himself as a painter of genre scenes, often depicting period figures, and as a portraitist. In this work, which displays an impressionist influence in its nuanced color and interplay of light, he depicts a scene of 18th-century city life: numerous figures, whose flowing women's dresses are visible, wander beneath a high portico, between whose arches opens a glimpse of the sea, crisscrossed by ships. The work is presented in a contemporary wooden frame.

Invasion 1996

Acrylic and sand on canvas. Title, signature, and date on the back. Ferrari's oeuvre has developed entirely around the sign, passing through various interpretative phases. This work belongs to the period after 1995, in which the linearity of the sign gives way to chaos, forms meet and clash freely within the canvas, and the previously used writing breaks in all directions. The sign is completely free of superstructures and is able to express itself in its entirety, manifesting dynamically across the entire surface of the painting. These works are created with black sand from Otranto, a material that allows Ferrari to express the full theatricality of the sign and which still represents the fundamental element of his painting today: through the sand, the sign traces its paths within the space of the painting and beyond.

Mixed media on canvas. Signed lower right. After his initial Futurist phase, Sordini's painting allowed the material to take center stage and became increasingly rarefied. His interest in the sign grew and became more defined—a slender and sparse sign, primary yet sinuous, and in a soft, delicate, almost impalpable palette. Sordini "uses a completely graphic technique to create sparse, subtle traces of color on the canvas, dominated by a single hue, that evoke memories of filamentary anthropoid images".

Oil on canvas. 18th-century Tuscan School. The large scene tells the tragic story of Apollo and Daphne, recounted in Ovid's Metamorphoses. According to myth, the god Apollo, having mocked Cupid, is struck by him with an arrow of love, causing him to fall in love with the nymph Daphne, who is instead struck by a leaden arrow, capable of ending their love. Apollo, struck by the arrow, falls madly in love with Daphne and runs toward her, but the nymph rejects the god and runs away. To avoid being captured, Daphne asks her father Peneus, eponymous god of the river Peneus, to transform her so she will not have to submit to Apollo. Peneus listens to her request, and when Apollo is about to seize her, Daphne transforms into a laurel tree, a plant that from that moment on becomes sacred to the god. The work displays some similarities to the pictorial style of Giuseppe Zocchi (1711-1767), whom the artist likely drew upon in particular in the depiction of trees and vegetation. The canvas features several paint losses, especially in the lower left corner, and a series of holes (of varying sizes along the edges and in the center) caused by previous nails placed for reinforcement. Framed.