The Cupids In The Forge Of Vulcan - Oil On Canvas - Workshop Of Francesco De Mura

The Cupids in Vulcan's Forge Attributed to the workshop of Francesco de Mura (1696–1782) 18th-century Italian school Oil on canvas mounted on panel Dimensions: 86 × 67 cm (without frame) and 107 × 87 cm (with frame) Antique frame painted in the style of Italian frames Five cupids are busy in the forge of the god Vulcan: – one puts an arrow in the fire, – three others hammer another arrow on the anvil, – while the last sharpens a third. At their feet, a quiver filled with ready-made arrows. The whole evokes the birth of the weapons of Love, destined to pierce the hardest hearts. This scene refers to an episode from Book IV of Ovid's Metamorphoses, which discusses Venus's adultery with Mars, which Vulcan will eventually discover. The arrows, forged without the knowledge of the blacksmith god, here embody the blind and capricious power of love. This painting, rare in its composition and subject, is very close to the work of Francesco de Mura, an 18th-century Neapolitan painter, a pupil of Francesco Solimena and an important figure in the Italian Rococo movement. Unlike the classic representations of Vulcan's forge, where the god is surrounded by Cyclopes or Venus, this composition chooses to depict only putti (or cupids) at work, in an atmosphere that is both mischievous and symbolic. This iconographic choice, both poetic and moralizing, reflects the influence of the Neapolitan Rococo circles, fond of light and tender mythological scenes. Comparisons with known works confirm this attribution: • the exclusive presence of cupids in action, • the softness of the flesh and the luminous treatment of fire, • the dynamics of the gestures and the structure of the group, are all characteristics found in the works from the workshop of Francesco de Mura. This is not a mythological subject frequently represented in European painting. The version presented here offers an original and charming look at Ovidian mythology, treated with lightness and a technical virtuosity characteristic of the Neapolitan school of the 18th century.Contact us for delivery