Offered by Antichità Castelbarco
Francesco Curradi, known as Battiloro (Florence 1570–1661)
Saint Catherine of Alexandria
oil on canvas
Dimensions: 81 x 61 cm / with frame 93 x 73 cm.
This exquisite painting, depicting a beautiful female figure in rich garments and with refined features, can certainly be attributed to the body of work by the Florentine painter Francesco Curradi (Florence 1570–1661): as we shall see, it features the typical characteristics of the female portraits found in the artist’s works, such as the facial features and the gentle expression of the face, as well as the meticulous rendering of the hair and the rich garments.
This is Saint Catherine of Alexandria, one of the most famous figures in 17th-century devotional painting, recognizable by her typical iconographic attributes, namely the crown and princely garments, testifying to her noble origins, along with the cogwheel symbolizing her martyrdom.
Catherine dedicated her life to study, surrounding herself with scholars and erudite figures, becoming highly learned, especially in philosophy and religion; her image, which has inspired a rich body of iconography throughout Europe, has garnered a large following by portraying a woman of great intelligence—thereby dispelling a millennia-old prejudice—and of strong character, capable of standing up to oppression with the determination of her faith and her knowledge.
A student of Giovan Battista Naldini, Francesco Curradi is one of the leading figures of 17th-century Florentine painting, celebrated by art critics as the painter of elegance and devotion, whose stylistic delicacy allowed him to become the most sought-after painter of sacred scenes among the Tuscan nobility.
The secret of his elegance lies in his harmonious compositions, in which he avoided the dramatic exaggerations of the Roman Baroque, preferring purity of line.
We see this aspect in the young woman’s face, turned intently upward, which exudes that sense of sweet devotional intimacy and soft chiaroscuro influenced by the style of Andrea del Sarto, rendering the skin and fabrics incredibly silky.
His work is distinguished by a discreet luxury, with an almost Flemish ability to render the tactile texture, luster, and quality of the finely embroidered fabrics, reflecting the aristocratic fashion of Florence at the time.
Returning finally to our composition, it depicts a subject already explored by Curradi; specifically, it is a detail taken from a more elaborate painting, the “Madonna and Child with Saint John the Baptist, Saint Lawrence, Saint Catherine of Alexandria, and Saint Agnes’ (fig. 1), commissioned for the Conservatorio delle Mantellate in Florence and dating to the first decade of the seventeenth century (between 1602 and 1608). fig. 1 Francesco Curradi, Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist, St. Lawrence, St. Catherine of Alexandria, and St. Agnes, Conservatorio delle Mantellate in Florence
Delevery information :
We take care of and organise the transport of the purchased works, both for Italy and abroad, through professional and insured carriers.
We take great care We personally take care of the packaging, to which we devote a great deal of care: each work is carefully packed, first with arti- cle material, then with a custom-made wooden box.
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.
