Ascent To The Calvary

Alessandro Valdani (1712 - 1773), attr.

Ascent to the Calvary

Oil on canvas glued on board, cm 50 x 39,5

With frame, cm 61 x 51

Critical card of Prof. Simonetta Coppa

Depicted is the Christ crowned with thorns, in blue mantle and red-pink robe, carrying on his shoulders the cross; before him, in the foreground, a executioner in brown yellow robe and blue cloak holds up a iron club and shows his tongue to Christ in a gesture of derision, While in the background you can see on the left a soldier with a helmet on his head, on the right there is a woman’s profile, with blue mantle and white coat (the Virgin or the Veronica).

Born in Chiasso in 1712, Valdani was trained at the school of the painter from Varese, Pietro Antonio Magatti (1691-1767), a prominent exponent of the Lombard Baroque. Magatti, whose production was characterized by the ability to masterfully decorate chapels and ossuaries, deeply influenced the young Valdani, transmitting not only painting techniques but also a certain thematic approach. The activity of Magatti, which extended to Gravedona, Valtellina and Cepina di Valdisotto, testifies its relevance in the artistic panorama of the time and its role as precursor in the decoration of votive spaces related to the theme of death and passing. It seems that, already from early years, even the Valdani had established himself in the field of melancholy depictions: in 1739 he could replace Pietro Ligari in the commission of paintings of the ossuary of Cepina.

Despite his clear reputation and the appreciation of contemporaries, even witnessed by the bishop of Chur who conferred on him the knight’s cross, part of the production of Valdani, has been lost. These include the entire decoration of the church of Sant'Anna in Chiasso and the banner for the Confraternity of Balerna from 1763.However, other evidence of its prolificacy and geographical range persists. In the areas of Mendrisio, for example, some wall paintings are preserved in the church of Colderio, among which stands out the Glory of San Giorgio on the vault of the presbytery, a work that highlights his mastery in the decoration of large surfaces. Valdani’s frescoes are also found in Chiavenna and Piuro, and even in Pavia, as proof of a clientele that crossed the borders of Ticino and Brianza. A significant example of his activity is the work carried out in 1762 in the church of Cavallasca, where Valdani painted the frescoes of the Annunciation, the Eternal Father and San Raffaele on the vault.

In our canvas, part of his pictorial poetics seems to be summed up: a scene of great pathos and drama, characterized by the exaggerated deformity of faces, almost grotesque. The dramatic accent of the narrative is underlined by a dark chromatic range and exaggerated facial expressions, a style that also refers to works by the master Magatti, such as the San Carlo Borromeo in the Museo Poldi Pezzoli. Even the face of the woman portrayed in profile is inspired by the works of his master, as you can see comparing it with the Madonna of the Ambrosiana Pinacoteca.