(Bologne 1574–1625 Milan)
The Holy Family and two angels,
oil on canvas, 149 x 107.5 cm, framed

Provenance:
Raggio d´Azeglio collection, Genoa, 19th Century;
And thence by descent to the present owner

We are grateful to Filippo Maria Ferro for confirming the attribution after examining the present painting in the original and for his help in cataloguing this lot.

The present work relates to the painting on panel in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen at Dresden (162 x 107 cm), which was purchased from the Belgioioso collection at Milan in 1728 (inv. 1722-1728, Gal. Nr. 643; see: H. Brigstocke, Procaccini in America, New York 2002, fig. a, p. 149; A. Henning, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, Köln 2005, I, p. 178; B. Maaz, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden: eine Geschichte der Malerei, Köln 2014, pp. 130-131). It was subsequently engraved by Giuseppe Camerata around 1788-95. In the Saxon capital there is another canvas (in horizontal format with the composition in counter-part) which is a studio work (see H. Brigstocke, op.cit., 2002, p. 149, fig. a below). Its composition is similar to another, highlighted by Marco Rosci, at the Maison d’Art, Lugano (see: M. Rosci, Giulio Cesare Procaccini, Soncino 1993, p. 53, fig. 23). An earlier copy on canvas (155 x 98 cm) represents only the Madonna and Christ Child; this is in the Louvre R.F. 2015 (see: S. Loire, Peintures italiennes du XVII siècle du musée du Louvre, Paris 2006, p. 266). The Child’s dynamic pose reoccurs in a panel with The Holy Family with Angels in the Royal Collection, London (see: H. Brigstocke, op.cit., 2002, p. 139, fig. a). The composition of all these paintings can be linked to a drawing that was sold at Christie’s, 7th July 1992, lot 116 (see: N. Ward Neilson, Giulio Cesare Procaccini disegnatore, Busto Arsizio 2004, pp. 46-47, cat. no. 27 and p. 164, fig. a).

In the corpus of works by Procaccini there are numerous examples of variants on the theme of the Holy Family, which during the mid 17th century in Genoa influenced the ‘revival’ of Procaccini’s style, especially by Valerio Castello and Domenico Piola (see: M. Rosci, op. cit., 1993, p. 47). In addition to the Dresden painting, the version on panel at Kansas City (originally in the Doria collection, see: H. Brigstocke, op. cit., 2002, pp. 86-87, cat. 6) and that at Copenhagen (see: H. Brigstocke, op.cit., 2002, p. 147, fig. a), the composition is also known from a replica in the Borromeo collection at Isola Bella (see: A. Morandotti, in: Collezione Borromeo. La Galleria dei Quadri dell’Isola Bella, ed. by A. Morandotti/M. Natale, Milan 2011, pp. 284-285, cat. 80), and another at Genoa, formerly in the Carrega collection (see: H. Brigstocke, op.cit., 2002, p. 157, fig. a). Other versions of the composition are listed in Genoese collections.

The present canvas, although under an old varnish, has a luminous palette and a delicacy of design, according to Ferro, as to preclude the possibility of even a diligent assistant’s collaboration – and here it is worth comparing both the Louvre and Isola Bella replicas – leading Ferro to assert the present work’s autograph status. It is likely that, the first Dresden version gaining immediate fame, that Procaccini himself immediately produced this replica, perhaps at the request of a patron.

The Madonna receives the Child as he approaches. Saint Joseph and two angels look on. Their body movements are a modern interpretation of the maniera of Correggio and Parmigianino. The knowledgeable distribution of light supports the dynamic motion of the figures. The range of colours; counterpointed reds and azure, passages of ochre and white, lend elegance to the sacred scene, making the action sparkle, without overwhelming the joyful domestic nature of this affable scene. The sculpturally conceived composition of interconnecting forms reveals the artist’s early training. This invention of circa 1620, or a little later, is in keeping with the Rubensian style diffused by van Dyck in Genoa (see: P. Boccardo (ed.), L’età di Rubens. Dimore, committenti e collezionisti genovesi, exhibition catalogue, Geneva - Milan 2004). Giulio Cesare Procaccini’s works were present in this city in numerous collections, such as those documented in the inventories of the collections of Giovanni Carlo and Marcantonio Doria and Tommaso and Giovanni Battista Raggi.

Additional image:
Giulio Cesare Procaccini, The Holy Family, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden
© bpk | Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden | Elke Estel | Hans-Peter Klut