This exquisite mid-19th-century oil painting by Italian artist Giuseppe Mazzolini (1806-1876) depicts a doting mother sitting alongside a sleeping child. Mazzolini was an accomplished painter of scenes, portraits, and old master copies.
With an expression of unbridled adoration, she gazes down towards her slumbering infant. Gently rocked to sleep, it rests amid abundant homely comforts. Both are partially illuminated by a divine light, which brings with it a sense of ethereal love and purity. It’s an evocative portrayal of motherhood and a poignant celebration of new life.
Although born in Camerino, central-eastern Italy, Mazzolini spent the mainstay of his career amid the ancient delights of Rome. Here, he established a studio and undertook numerous commissions for affluent tourists.
Rome was a thriving hub of ‘artistas’, with a myriad of rustic workshops dotted throughout its warren of mazy streets. All of these were readily open to sightseers, and one could discuss the arts at length with each passionate incumbent. In a publication titled ‘Murray's Handbook on Rome’ from 1843, the author proclaims that: “The instruction to be derived in the studios of these gentlemen is unquestionable, and is afforded on all occasions in the most obliging manner.”
Such artists were usually the product of rigorous academic training and immersed in the Renaissance and Baroque luminaries. With easy access to works by Titian, Raphael and Caravaggio, they strived in the shadow of the masters.
Their production tended to focus on popular themes - with maternity being among them. It’s a gentle and relatable subject, abundant with candour, which alludes to the Blessed Virgin and Child. Mazzolini produced several of these between around 1858 and 1869.
Aside from his fine scenes, he was also an accomplished portraitist and offered patrons the opportunity to have their likeness rendered in the manner of Titian. As you can imagine, this was particularly popular, as who wouldn’t want to attend a studio in central Rome to sit for a meticulous portrait by a gregarious Italian?
In 1837, Jane Caroline Armatt (1798-1857), a monied Philadelphian, commissioned Mazzolini to produce portraits of her two daughters in this style, with highly effective results. She recorded how “father is delighted with the portraits so much that he is constantly looking at them, and he thinks them the best modern portraits he has ever seen.”
During her ‘Grand Tour’, she amassed a total of 30 paintings including a piece by Claude Lorrain, a Carracci, and two copies also by Mazzolini. 19 cases were shipped to America filled to the brim with art and decorative wares.
A few years before he died, Mazzolini worked at a studio close to the Palazzo Montecitorio, designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini - now firmly established as one of Rome’s most beloved ‘artistas’.
Signed/dated in the lower right and held in a later frame.
Learn more about Giuseppe Mazzolini in our directory.
Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 34” x 44½” / 87cm x 113cm
Year of creation: 1861
Labels & Inscriptions: Framer’s label from Gerrards of Canterbury, Kent.
Provenance: Private collection, UK.
Condition: Cleaned. Revarnished. Craquelure throughout. The paint layer is stable. Frame in good condition with minor age-related wear.
Artist’s auction maximum: £13,000 for ‘The Archangel Michael Defeating Satan, After Guido Reni’, Oil on canvas, Christie’s, An Opulent Aesthetic: An Important Private Collection from an English Country House, London, 09 feb 2023 (lot 214).
Our reference: BRV1978
