Francesco Lavagna (1684 – 1749), Still Life with Flowers

Francesco Lavagna (Naples, 1684 – 1749) Still Life with Flowers Oil on canvas, 62 x 48 cm Frame 66 x 81 cm The Still Life with Flowers under examination can be compared to the production of the Neapolitan painter Francesco Lavagna (Naples, 1684 – 1749). There are few documents about the artist, often confused with Giuseppe Lavagna, with whom he almost certainly shares a family tie, mentioned by the biographer of Neapolitan painters, sculptors, and architects Bernardo de Dominici as a student of the great painter Andrea Belvedere. Francesco became a painter in a style close to Gaspare Lopez (?- Naples ca. 1732), an important Neapolitan still life painter. Since Lopez is registered among the students of Andrea Belvedere's school, some scholars believe that, even without documentary evidence but based on the stylistic analysis of the works, Francesco Lavagna's training path may have been the same. Lavagna's figure has recently been reconstructed thanks to two canvases passed on the antique market in the early eighties, one of which clearly signed "Fran.° Lavagna P”. These works have then allowed, thanks to the many stylistic references with canvases appeared on the market, to reconstruct, still partially, the productive history of the artist who is configured as an elegant interpreter of the new pictorial trend of the Neapolitan still life, closer to the French taste, more decorative and fanciful. Lavagna favors compositions formed by cascades of flowers and fruits, usually set outdoors, accompanied by vases, jugs, ancient ruins, statues of female figures and animals. Another distinctive trait of the painter is the addition of ceramics with delicate bluish coloring, not only a chromatic expedient with a decorative purpose but a testimony to the refined taste for artisanal production that arrived in large ports such as Naples. In this canvas, the painter offers a particularly vivid and peculiar passage of a vase of colorful flowers arranged with apparent randomness; among them, you can recognize large roses, white and lilac carnations with frayed petals, candid small bellflowers, and tulips. The chromatic score based on the soft colors of blues, greens, and pinks, with flashes of intense reds, refers to other examples of the Neapolitan painter's production, as does the vase with a delicate blue color. The object is in good condition. With Ars Antiqua, it is possible to defer all amounts up to a maximum of € 7,500 at ZERO RATE, for a total of 15 INSTALLMENTS. Ex. Tot. € 4,500 = Monthly installment € 300 for 15 months. Ex. Tot. € 3,600 = Monthly installment € 720 for 5 months. For amounts exceeding € 7,500 or for a longer deferral time (over 15 installments), we can provide a customized payment. Contact us directly to get the best quote. LIVE TV – SUNDAY 19.00 – 23.00 Dig.terr. 126 + 809 SKY - THURSDAY 21.00 - 24.00 Dig.terr. 134 + 809 SKY – Streaming on our website www.arsantiquasrl.com and on our social networks Facebook and Youtube All works offered by Ars Antiqua are sold with a certificate of authenticity in accordance with the law and accurate in-depth information. You can see the works directly at the Milan showroom gallery, in via Pisacane 55 and 57. We personally organize transport and deliveries of the works, both for Italy and abroad.