Lot 18: The Pietà

Claudio Ridolfi Verona 1570-1644 Corinaldo
The Pietà
oil on slate, octagonal
10 x 10 in. 25.4 x 25.4 cm.

Doña Sofía Mayol Senillosa de Quesada, acquired in Paris circa 1885 and by descent in the family of the present owner.

THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN


Rather than joining the renowned local workshop of Felice Rizzo, the young Ridolfi looked to Venice for inspiration. He allegedly studied under Paolo Veronese for a short time and his various pietàs and depositions have clear stylistic analogies to those by Palma il Giovane (see S.M. Rinaldi, Palma il Giovane , Milano, 1984, pp. 310-11, figs. 293-301).

In a letter of 1995, Dr. Lecchini Giovannoni confirms the attribution of this painting to Ridolfi and draws some stylistic parallels between it and other of his compositions. She likens the light falling on the bodies and the pained expression of the angel on the right side of the Deposition in the Church of San Pietro in Carnario, Verona (see exhibition catalogue 'Cinquant'anni di pittura veronese 1580-1630', Verona, 1974, fig. 205) to the shimmering light on the body of Christ and the distressed expression of the present Mater Dolorosa . She further compares the face of the Virgin in Ridolfi's Assumption of the Virgin of 1596 in the Church of the Campagna Madonna in Verona ( op. cit. , fig. 196) to that of the angel in the present painting, particularly in its profile view and the handling of paint in the hair.

Paintings on slate are very often related to Verona, as slate was quarried just outside the city and could be easily obtained. Between 1590 and 1630 there was a huge growth in the demand for these small, intimate paintings that were often enriched by ornate frames and admired for their jewel-like qualities. The use of this new support inevitably resulted in a new and original way of painting that was characterized by simple, uncrowded compositions defined by strong color and the dramatic nocturnal effects made possible by the slate colored background. For a full discussion on painting on slate, see the exhibition catalogue, Pietra dipinta. Tesori nascosti del '500 e del '600 da una collezione private Milanese , ed. M. Bona Castellotti, Milan, 2000, in particular S. Marinelli, 'I dipinti su paragone veronesi', pp. 27-31.