Alberto Carlieri

Pair of paintings depicting Architectural Capriccios with Bacchanal and Sacrifice Scene, Alberto Carlieri (Rome 1672-1720) Oil on canvas; Measurements: canvases cm H 73.5 x W 97. Frame: cm W 118.5 x H 94.5 x D 5 Formerly Rome, Lampronti Gallery Price: private negotiation Object accompanied by our certificate of authenticity The valuable pair of paintings, executed in oil on canvas and presented within carved and gilded wood frames in style, depict Architectural Capriccios enlivened by figures and scenes of classical taste. The works, attributed to Alberto Carlieri, are published in Giancarlo Sestieri's book Il Capriccio Architettonico. The canvases are entitled as follows: Bacchanal with Bacchus on a donkey, dancing maidens and musicians, cupids with flowers. Courtyard of an Ionic palace with a dilapidated upper cornice with statues and vases. On the right, a large amphora vase sculpted in bas-relief. Sacrifice scene in an atrium of a composite palace. Front archway and niches with allegorical female statues between the arches. The works, painted with great finesse even in the details and small figures, well express the artistic expression of the famous Roman painter Alberto Carlieri (Rome, 1672 - 1720), the most appreciated and requested author in Rome between the death of Giovanni Ghisolfi (Milan 1623-1683) and the affirmation of Giovanni Paolo Panini (Piacenza 1691 – Rome 1765). Carlieri was born in Rome in 1672 and began studying architectural painting under the guidance of Giuseppe de Marchis. He became a pupil and then a collaborator of Andrea Pozzo. Present in the most illustrious Roman collections, from the collection of Filippo II Colonna, the Rospigliosi, and Cardinal Valenti Gonzaga, Carlieri elaborates recognizable compositional models, influenced not only by the painting of the master but also by that of Viviano and Nicolò Codazzi. His pictorial activity can be followed through the signed works, around which it has been possible to build a not small catalogue of canvases. News about Carlieri and his signed or dated works ranges between approximately 1690 and 1720. Nothing precise is known about the painter's life, who should have died in Rome shortly after 1720. The works are in excellent condition and have a modern relining. High-resolution images are available upon request. Bibliography: Il Capriccio Architettonico in Italia nel XVII e XVIII secolo, by Giancarlo Sestieri, EtGraphiae, 2015, page 198