Still Life In A Landscape, Giovanni Paolo Castelli (rome, 1659–1730)

Still Life in a Landscape with Fruit and Game
attributed to Giovanni Paolo Castelli, known as Spadino (Rome, 1659 – 1730)

oil on canvas, 67 x 89 cm., framed 90 x 109 cm.
Short video of the work: https://youtu.be/3sYC5rgpsg0

Complete details of the work: https://www.antichitacastelbarco.it/it/product/still-life-in-a-landscape-with-fruit-and-game

An outdoor setting, with a glimpse of a hilly landscape opening up in the distance in the center, frames our beautiful canvas, which showcases a rich selection of game and fruit, arranged in the foreground close to the viewer’s perspective, occupying much of the visual field with their vibrant and festive colors.

The style and quality of the work, as well as the painting technique of this still life—characterized by subtle luminous vibrations and a vivid chromatic palette—make it attributable to the Roman artist Giovanni Paolo Castelli, known as “lo Spadino” (Rome, 1659 – 1730), one of the most important specialists in this genre of late Baroque Rome, who enjoyed a highly successful career between the 17th and 18th centuries.

In fact, upon analyzing the rich and diverse body of work by the Roman master, our painting can be placed among his rare works in which, alongside a selection of fruit—including large melons, ripe figs, dark grapes, and plums—we see the inclusion of game, presumably at the request of a patron who was a lover of hunting. Alongside various birds, the spoils of a fruitful hunting expedition, there is also a small green woodpecker, with its characteristic red patch on the head, and a charming rodent peeking out from behind the tree trunk.

The painter indulges in a skillful and brilliant chromatic weaving of the surfaces, using a painterly texture rendered with exceptional vibrancy in its luminous and 'tactile' richness, fully respecting the taste of the Roman High Baroque.
The Flemish influences, which had shaped Roman Baroque still life, particularly the work of Abraham Brueghel, are unmistakable and evident.

Giovanni Paolo Castelli could boast a family workshop (where his brother and son worked) that was long esteemed in Rome during the second half of the 17th century, specializing in the still-life genre, which allowed him to quickly achieve considerable fame, working for the most important Roman families, such as the Chigi, Cardinal Pamphili—who owned no fewer than eleven Spadinos—the Spadas, and the Rospigliosi.

By way of comparison, among works analogous to ours, similar in composition and style, we may mention:
- Still Life with Melon, Peaches, Grapes, Game, Guinea Pig, and Hens, Sotheby’s, New York, January 17, 1992, now in a private collection, Mantua, http://catalogo.fondazionezeri.unibo.it/scheda/opera/90622/Castelli%20Giovanni%20Paolo%2C%20Natura%2..- Still Life with Pomegranates, Peaches, Plums, and Birds (Private collection, Gardone Riviera) http://catalogo.fondazionezeri.unibo.it/scheda.v2.jsp?tipo_scheda=OA&id=90633&titolo=Castell...
- Still Life with Fruit and a Parrot, "Domenico Inzaghi" Civic Art Gallery, Budrio
- Still Life with Fruit, Mushrooms, and a Bird, Antique Market, Verona
- Still Life with Watermelon, Peaches, Grapes, and Pomegranate, "Fortunato Duranti" Civic Art Gallery, Montefortino
- Still Life with Melon, Watermelon, Peaches, Grapes, Figs, and Pomegranate, Private Collection (http://catalogo.fondazionezeri.unibo.it/scheda/opera/89763/Castelli%20Giovanni%20Paolo%2C%20Natura%2...)- Still Life with Fruit, Jug, and Bird, Palazzo Blu, Fondazione CariPisa Collection, Pisa

The painting is complemented by a charming antique frame that suits it well and is sold with a certificate of authenticity in accordance with the law.

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