Veneto. 2nd quarter of the 18th century Christ... Lot 316

Veneto. 2nd quarter of the 18th century Christ and the adulteress Oil on canvas 91 x 132 cm Certificates: expertise of Emilio Negro (in copy) Conservation status. Support: 80% (rintelo, probable breakthrough restored). Conservation status. Surface: 80% (color falls and additions) The episode is the one also known as the pericope of the adulteress, taken from the gospel of John (8:1-11). Note the inscription in Hebrew on the lower left corner written on the ground by Christ before pronouncing against the Pharisees surrounding him the famous phrase "Let him who is without sin among you cast the stone first." Emilio Negro, in an undated study, circumscribes the work within Venetian figurative culture between the 17th and 18th centuries, on which stylistic traits of Roman influence emerge, "a Classical academic painting." Such observations lead him to dubiously advance the name of Antonio Balestra (1666-1740), an artist who, after an apprenticeship between Venice and his native Verona under Giovanni Ceffis (?-1688) and Antonio Bellucci (1654-1726), moved to the Urbe in 1690. Here he entered the studio of Carlo Maratta (1625-1713), moving toward a more academic and classicist style. Andrea Tomezzoli, a specialist on the painter, however, points out that "the work"-"really of good quality"-"cannot be traced back to any of Balestra's prototypes or even to any painter of the close circle," suggesting a definition "a little broader than the Balestresque sphere" (communication of Nov. 2, 2023). The textural and dynamic brushstroke, confident in the stroke, suggests the Venetian matrix of the mid-eighteenth century, in accordance with a wide chromatic range remains with skillful iridescent nuances, a careful restitution of luminous reflections, and also an attention to detail (see the striped fabric that encircles the woman's left shoulder). We thank Dr. Andrea Tomezzoli for valuable support in cataloging the work.