Saint Cecilia At The Organ: 18th-century Italian School, Oil On Canvas

An important 18th-century oil on canvas depicting Saint Cecilia, patron saint of musicians, shown seated before an organ whose pipes are visible on the left side of the composition.

The saint is depicted in a pose of deep devotion, her gaze turned toward heaven, one hand resting on her chest while the other reaches toward the instrument’s keyboard. This expressive gesture, combined with the idealized face and the lighting focused on the skin tones, lends the work a beautiful spiritual intensity.

The composition follows the tradition of 18th-century Italian religious painting, which was still strongly influenced by the great masters of the Bolognese school of the previous century, particularly the work of Guido Reni and his followers. The dark, unadorned background particularly highlights the face, the hands, and the broad drapery in shades of brown and deep blue.

The rendering of the face is particularly meticulous, with soft modeling of the skin tones, a slightly parted mouth, and a gaze imbued with mystical elevation. The finely rendered hands, as well as the interplay of the folds in the garment, attest to meticulous execution.

The canvas has recently been re-stretched and mounted on a later stretcher, a standard procedure for a work of this period. The surface features a varnish and normal wear-related restorations consistent with its age.

A beautiful religious painting with character, offering significant decorative appeal and particularly refined iconography centered on the figure of Saint Cecilia.

18th-century work.
Delivery between two wooden boards by a carrier to the ground floor in front of your home: 100 euros in France, 200 euros in the EU, and 1,000 euros for the rest of the world.