(Naples 1604–1670)
Saint Agatha,
oil on canvas, 75 x 63 cm, framed

We are grateful to Riccardo Lattuada for confirming the attribution after examining the present painting in the original.

Andrea Vaccaro came from an important family of artists and he was one of the protagonists of the Neapolitan school of painting during the seventeenth century, between the leadership of Massimo Stanzione and the young Luca Giordano. His career was based in Naples and its immediate surroundings, where he received important ecclesiastical commissions, as well as working both for Neapolitan and Spanish patrons. He was greatly influenced, from an early age, by the style of Caravaggio, particularly by the master’s chiaroscuro effects and naturalistic rendering of the figures.

Vaccaro’s output is distinguished by his depiction of female Saints represented in moments of profound devotion or inspiration, such as the present painting. In these composition the Saint is often represented half length, with pale flesh tones that contrast against a dark background, with a quietly intimate pictorial language (see R. Lattuada, I percorsi di Andrea Vaccaro [1604–1670], in: M. Izzo, Nicola Vaccaro [1640–1709]. Un artista a Napoli tra Barocco e Arcadia, Todi 2009, pp. 49–108).