Adoration Of The Shepherds, Domenico Carnevale (1524 - 1579)

Domenico Carnevale (Sassuolo, 1524 - Modena, 1579)
Adoration of the Shepherds
Oil on copper, 42 x 28 cm - with frame 54 x 36 cm
Domenico Carnevale (Sassuolo, 1524 - Modena, 1579)

Adoration of the Shepherds

Oil on copper, cm 42 x 28

Frame cm 54 x 36

Expert opinion of Prof. Emilio Negro

The painting depicts the Adoration of the Shepherds, the Child in the center, with the Madonna kneeling in prayer and an angel behind him; a woman with a child in her arms, a shepherd with sheep on the right, is in the foreground a paw on the left and various other characters both male and female. The architectures of the background, among which you can see a glimpse of the landscape, are hidden in the upper part by clouds, where there is a "heavenly glory" with three angels in flight.

The painting shows Mannerist characters dating back to the second half of the sixteenth century, and can be traced back to an author from Modena, with stylistic references to the Bolognese Samacchini (1532 - 1577) and Passerotti (1529 - 1592). More precisely, it is attributed to Domenico Carnevale (1524-1579), one of the most important masters of the sixteenth century active in the local area. The Carnival was formed in Emilia, where he worked for many years. His works, however, also reveal a clear Roman influence, dictated by a long experience in the City, during which he also devoted himself to the restoration of the Sistine Chapel. Formed in the late-Mannerist environment of Modena, it is also linked to the tradition of Parma Correggesca and Ferrara Dossesca; the Carnival also maintains in his work always a slight archaic feeling, heir to the late-Roman Mannerist tradition. The main stylistic reference must be identified in a similar work by subject and iconographic setting, from the church of the Pio Istituto Orfanelle di San Geminiano di Modena, currently part of the Art Collection of the Province, attributed to the same influence of Carnival. Another interesting comparison is to be found with A Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, at the Galleria Estense in Modena.