Lot 83: JACOB DE WIT

JACOB DE WIT AMSTERDAM 1695 - 1754 AN ALLEGORY OF AUTUMN signed and dated lower left: J.De Wit F.1740 oil on canvas, en grisaille 144.8 by 118.1 cm.

Anonymous sale, New York, Sotheby's, 14 January 1994, lot 179;
With Rafael Valls, London, 1994.

Jacob de Wit excelled in Rococo ceiling and room decorations, and his output of colourful ceiling and wall paintings, door panels and chimney pieces was unrivalled.
This painting is a characteristic example of another genre he popularised: grisailles, also known as 'witjes', a play on his own name. These imitation reliefs of stucco often were the corner pieces of a decorative scheme that he designed, and mainly depicted allegories portrayed by groups of putti. Another such allegory, An allegory of the Hunt, identical in size to the present work, was sold, New York, Sotheby's, 27 May 2004, lot 41.