Oil painting on canvas. Italian school of the eighteenth century. In the portrait of this gentleman, the dressing gown made of an elegant floral fabric stands out in particular, in shades of brick red that recall the color of the wig. The severity of the pose and the austere gaze of the character almost contrast with the almost frivolous elegance of his clothing. The painting, restored and relined, is presented in a frame from the early 1900s.

Oil on paper applied to canvas. The four works propose pastoral subjects, animated by shepherds with their herds and their faithful dogs, sometimes at rest on the side of the road, in two scenes also flanked by fruit sellers. The works are inspired (as well as by the citation on the back of one of them) by the production of Francesco Londonio, the Milanese artist of the 18th century who made a name for himself for his rural and pastoral scenes, in a repertoire of tasty snapshots of peasant life. The four paintings are presented in contemporary gilded frames, with small defects.

Female Face 2001

Oil painting on canvas. Dated and signed on the back. Born in Seregno, Danilo Martinis was trained with Osvaldo Minotti. Painter and designer, he has furnished prestigious residences all over the world, his works are particularly appreciated in the United Arab Emirates and in Russia. He loves to express his thoughts through graphic-figurative images rendered through geometric effects and chromatic games, using mainly female figures as interpreters. In this work he proposes a close-up of a female face, enhancing its expressiveness through the play of colors in the ranges of yellow.

Oil painting on canvas. The landscape reproduces a countryside near the sea coast; on the left the houses, in the center some human figurines, on the right two grazing goats: the romantic atmosphere, supported by the broad sky with pinkish-white clouds, is typical of a "postcard" from the Grand Tour. The work is presented in coeval frame.

Oil painting on canvas. In a Mediterranean-type coastal landscape, due to the vegetation characterized by the palm tree and the agave plant in the foreground on the right, an architectural stone structure is found on the right in which the Castle of Terracina can be recognized, while on the left the lake opens up of the Circeo and far away barren peaks rise; in the foreground on the left is a male figure intent on quenching his thirst from the leather skin; with the other hand he leans on the long rifle, while a characteristic headdress is placed on the ground, which evokes the one worn by nineteenth-century brigands. The scene is set at sunset, as the absolutely orange sky evokes, which gives it a romantic and suggestive atmosphere. The work, restored and relined, is presented in a frame from the early 1900s.

The Landing of the Sirens 1976

Oil (mixed) on canvas. Signed and dated lower right. Further signature, title, technique and declaration of authenticity on the back. Mario Cortiello, a Neapolitan painter who was a pupil of Gennaro Villani and later a friend and collaborator of Umberto Lilloni, participated with his own personal style in the renewal of Neapolitan painting, without straying from tradition. Endowed with fertile invention and remarkable representative capacity, he left behind a rich and varied production. Landscape or urban views are recurring in his production, populated by numerous figures, often, in the Neapolitan setting, by Pulcinella, depicted floating on dreamlike backgrounds, so much so that he is defined as the Neapolitan Chagall. In this work, the Pulcinellas joyfully welcome a large group of women disembarking from an arriving ship. The work is presented in a frame.

Oil painting on canvas. The painting, created for decorative purposes on an octagonal canvas, presents a wide and slow river in the middle of the countryside, to the bank of which a wide staircase leads, decorated with statues and marble vases, evidently the access to the garden of a villa. Restored and relined, the painting is applied to a new frame with tie rods. It is presented in an adapted style frame.

Cherubs playing with cards

Oil on canvas. The depicted scene is set in a closed environment with a wide window which provides a glimpse of landscape. Three cherubs are sitting on benches and they are playing with cards, trying to build a castle. The painting has been restored. 18th century.

Oil painting on canvas. The large landscape foreshortening offers a view of a lake enclosed by mountain peaks, which evoke Lake Como; in the foreground, on the slope from which the view opens, a corner of the garden with buried flowers and potted plants, to create a corner of color in contrast with the dominant ranges of blue and green. The painting has a small patch on the back. It is presented in a stylish frame.

Oil painting on canvas. The biblical episode depicted refers to the story of Daniel, the prophet in the court of King Darius the Mede who, for having prayed to his God, was condemned to be thrown into the lions' den. But God saved Daniel, sending an angel to close the jaws of the beasts, and the king pardoned Daniel by instead condemning those who had denounced him. The subject has been depicted several times in art, for the fascination linked to history but also for its exotic flavor due to the presence of wild beasts; in particular we remember the version by Rubens of 1615, where the prophet is depicted naked in the underground pit, while he prays ardently, surrounded by a crowd of ferocious lions. The work presented here instead proposes a version centered on the dialogue between the prophet and the angel, who face each other, standing out with the vivid colors of their robes against the dark background of a prison; there is only one lion, meekly crouching at the angel's feet, and therefore the spiritual and salvific dimension of the biblical event prevails. According to the famous art historian Maurizio Marini, a specialist in the painting of Caravaggio and Baroque art, who had had the opportunity to view the painting years ago, the work could be attributable to Antonio Maria Vassallo (1620 -1664) for the compositional and chromatic choices. The painting, restored and relined, is presented with a listello frame.

Female Portrait

Oil on canvas. Signed at the bottom right. Portrait of a young woman in a black evening dress, enlivened by the large flowered shawl she wears draped over one shoulder. The work of the Romagna artist Alberto Salietti. Although he spent almost all his artistic career in Milan and Liguria, Alberto Salietti - painter, engraver, mosaicist and fresco painter - remained a point of reference for painters from Romagna, especially between the two wars. After moving with his family to Milan, Salietti attended the Brera Academy of Fine Arts until 1914. After the Venice Biennial in 1924, he joined the Novecento movement and became its secretary in 1925. In 1926 he exhibited at the "First exhibition of the Novecento italiano" and in 1927 was one of the founders of the "Group of seven modern painters" together with Funi, Sironi, Tosi, Carrà, Marussig and Bernasconi. As a portraitist and landscape painter, Salietti - who patiently drew on post-impressionist, secessionist and Novecentista influences - made an original contribution to Italian art between the two wars, distinguishing himself by his joyful and optimistic adherence to reality. The painting comes in a frame.

Face of a Young Commoner

Oil painting on canvas. Signed lower left. The artist Giovanni Madonini was a portrait painter but above all of popular characters, often depicted intent on small activities and with bright colors. Work presented in frame.

Oil on canvas. Lombard school of the eighteenth century. An almost garland-like composition of variegated flowers, which occupy the entire pictorial field, against a dark background from which they emerge by themselves, without any other furnishing element. Restored and relined, the painting is presented in a frame in the early 1900s style.

Pencil, charcoal and white lead on paper. Signed (Amalia Bianchi?) and dated at the bottom right. Very effective is the use of different pigments that creates a play of chiaroscuri that underlines the figure. The portrait come in a 19th century wooden frame with leather leafy and floral inserts; it has missing parts and color drops.

Oil on canvas. The face of the Virgin reminds of the style of representation of Giovanni Battista Salvi, also known as Sassoferrato (1609-1685), whose style was often revived in 18th and 19th century. There is a cartouche on the back of the painting with the inventory number (N. 193) and the name of the collector Giuseppe Bertarelli (1804-1875), merchant and philanthropist from Milan, known for his important art donations to the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana. The painting is in its first canvas; needs restorations for small paint losses and two small holes. It is presented in a coeval frame.

Oil on canvas. Anonymous author, probably English (on the back of the canvas there is a stamp of the London origin of the canvas itself), the large painting portrays two figures, a man and a girl, who are walking away from the city in the background, with its minarets and domes; the girl holds a long palm branch on a shoulder, while she supports the man with her other shoulder and her hand, guiding him along their way. The colours stand out in the painting, the darker colours of the clothes and the skin of the figures contrast the light ones of the city and the clear and bright sky. The painting is presented in a coeval frame decorated with gilded shells.

Oil on canvas applied to plywood. Signed lower left. Ezio Pastorio, originally from Cremona but transplanted to Valseriana after his studies, is considered "a great Italian master of the 20th century, who knew how to renew the artistic language of the landscape while maintaining a strong link with 19th century painting". His production is post-impressionist in nature, especially in the large landscape production that depicts the Po and Bergamo plains, the Venetian lagoon and some Parisian glimpses, admired during some travels. In his works, Pastorio creates suggestive atmospheres using infinite ranges of colours, which harmonize and sometimes even contrast, but always presented as a transparency which annuls the static nature of the representation and with a delicacy which expresses his devout religiosity towards nature and the created. Less frequent in his production are floral subjects, such as this composition in a vase of wild flowers, among which poppies and cornflowers stand out, with a bulb abandoned on the table top. The work, coming from a private collection, is presented in a frame.