(Naples or Rome 1587–1629 Rome)
The Road to Calvary,
oil on canvas, 94 x 134.5, framed

Provenance:
European Private Collection

Literature:
M. Chiarini, Teodoro Filippo di Liagno detto Filippo Napoletano 1589–1629. Vita e Opere, Florence 2007, p. 177, fig. 153, pp. 178-179, fig. 153 a, p. 327, no. 108; L. Salerno, in Civiltà del Seicento a Napoli, ed. by E. Bellucci, exhibition catalogue, Naples, 1984, p. 234, no. 2.47, illustrated Exhibited: Naples, Museo e Gallerie Nazionali di Capodimonte, Civiltà del Seicento a Napoli, 24 October 1984 – 14 April 1985, no. 2.47, illustrated

The present painting is an autograph version of the Calvary (Florence, Palatine Gallery), which Filippo Napoletano executed at the beginning of his sojourn in Florence, around 1617. It was published by Salerno in 1984 on the occasion of the exhibition, Civiltà del Seicento a Napoli, and was later included in Marco Chiarini’s 2007 monograph as a wholly autograph work, with an emphasis on the liveliness of its figures and vast range of colours.

According to Chiarini, this work is “a replica, although with substantial variations, of the Calvary painted for Cardinal Carlo de Medici. In the present case, the artist has opted for a closer point of view, more spread out figures, concentrating the viewer’s attention on the figure of Christ who has fallen under the Cross, and animating the composition by means of exotic episodes – the group of Turks to the right, displaying costumes that already appeared in the series Capricci et Habiti militari – enhancing the intensity of the colour palette through the use of livelier hues, with a prevalence of pink, white, ochre and blue shades in the clothes and the varied ranges of green of the landscape. The figures are extraordinarily dynamic and accentuate the upward movement of the composition”.

This work displays similarities with St John the Baptist Preaching (Paris, Musée du Louvre). In the present painting the recurring figure of the Turk appears to the far right and constitutes a development of a well-known physiognomic type from the artist’s oeuvre: There is a drawing executed by the master depicting the figure of the standing Turk with a turban (Dijon, Musée des Beaux-Arts) and the etching, Turk with a cloak and turban (London, British Museum). The landscape is reminiscent of Elsheimer, which was an essential source of inspiration for the artist. The dynamic, vibrant figures add an exotic touch to the sacred scene and reveal the considerable influence of Jacques Callot’s works. As Salerno pointed out, the entire scene shows some affinities with the print, The Road to Calvary, from Callot’s series, The Large Passion, which can be dated to around 1618–20. On these similarities, Salerno observes that “it is well known that Filippo Angeli collaborated with the French engraver and derived some of his own paintings from the latter’s work”, such as the The Fair of Impruneta.

Additional picture
Filippo Napoletano, Study of a standing figure, Dijon, Musée des Beaux-Arts
© Musée des beaux-arts de Dijon. Photo François Jay