ROSA DI TIVOLI PHILIPP PETER ROOS, dit (Francfort-sur-le... Lot 26

ROSA DI TIVOLI PHILIPP PETER ROOS, dit (Francfort-sur-le Main, 1657 - Rome, 1706) ITALIAN LANDSCAPE About 1680 Oil on canvas 134 x 99 cm This mountainous landscape is animated by a powerful waterfall near which two shepherds are resting, accompanied by goats, sheep and a bovine. In the background, a village and ruins stand out against a sky of heavy clouds, revealing a zenithal light. Philipp Peter Roos, born in Frankfurt am Main in 1657, learned to paint from his father, Joann Heinrich Roos (1631-1685), who specialized in landscapes. He was called by Charles I, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel, who took him into his service. In 1677, Charles I sent him to Rome to complete his knowledge, where he settled permanently. He and his wife lived in Tivoli, which earned him the nickname Rosa Di Tivoli. Roos set up a menagerie there to draw from life. This house was called Noah's Ark. His most important decorative cycle is that of the Taverna Palace in Rome, where he frescoed the walls of the salons with pastoral subjects. Specialising in the representation of shepherds and their flocks, he received numerous commissions for the most important Roman palaces. His move to Italy marks the time of immense success for this talented painter. Our painting can be indisputably classified among the best works produced on his arrival at the Tivoli waterfalls.