Offered by Antichità Castelbarco
Alonso Cano (Granada, 1601 – Granada, 1667)
The Guardian Angel (The Archangel Raphael Showing the Way to Tobias)
Oil on canvas 114 x 73 cm. - Framed 127 x 86 cm.
The protagonist of our painting is the Archangel Raphael, depicted while protecting a child [1]: the meaning of this iconography, which spread primarily between the 16th and 17th centuries, has taken on a broader significance over time, eventually becoming the emblem of the guardian angel whose task is to protect every human being.
[1] In the ‘Book of Tobit,’ the angel Raphael was invoked by Tobit, a righteous and poor man, to accompany his son Tobiah on a journey; Raphael showed Tobiah the safest route and saved him more than once, without ever revealing himself as an angel, except at the end of the story.
The angel is depicted here in the customary form of a young man with delicate features, wearing a robe cinched at the waist and marked by ample drapery. The young boy, innocently frightened, turns his eyes toward the sky, where the light of divine grace appears through a break in the clouds.
The stylistic and figurative characteristics of the painting evoke echoes of 17th-century Spanish painting, distinguished by its refined style, capable of uniting the Baroque language—by definition opulent—with elements of classical influence.
In particular, observing its iconographic features and draftsmanship, a comparison to the style of Alonso Cano (1601–1667)—one of the most versatile and influential figures of Spain’s Siglo de Oro—seems apt: his work marks the transition from tenebrist realism to a more idealized and classical Baroque.
In particular, regarding the drawing, we can discern a clear derivation of our painting from an etching by Simone Cantarini (known as “il Pesarese”), titled Guardian Angel, created around 1640. which our artist must have studied and reworked (see: “Simone Cantarini il Pesarese” by Mario Mancigotti, 1975, Banca Popolare Pesarese, page 201, see fig. 1).
Simone Cantarini was one of the greatest engravers of the Italian 17th century, and his prints enjoyed widespread circulation throughout Europe in the 17th century, profoundly influencing devotional painting in Spain.
His etchings circulated in Spanish artistic centers such as Madrid and Seville, where they were copied or “translated” into paintings to meet the demand for sacred images in the classical style.
The influence of the Bolognese school on Spain’s Siglo de Oro was profound, fueled by the circulation of prints that served as veritable “style manuals” for Iberian painters; and in addition to Alonso Cano, many other Spanish masters looked to Bolognese classicism.
It is interesting to note that, while Cantarini’s print is distinguished by the lightness of its line and the influence of Guido Reni, our painting translates the model into a more sculptural and monumental form, with even primitive features, typical of Spanish Baroque. Fig. 1 Guardian Angel, Simone Cantarini c. 1640 From "Simone Cantarini il Pesarese" by Mario Mancigotti, 1975, Banca Popolare Pesarese, page 201
Delevery information :
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Should you have the desire to see this or other works in person, we would be happy to welcome you to our gallery in Riva del Garda, Viale Giuseppe Canella 18, we are always open by appointment only.
