Small Concert

The paintings of Alessandro Magnasco (Genoa 1667–1749) are either greatly liked or not liked at all. His original visionary style for the time is characterized by unreal, almost theatrical scenes, immersed in disturbing atmospheres; his figures are elongated, grotesque, often deformed, created with rapid and nervous brushstrokes that give the subjects a strong emotional dynamism. His characters emerge from (human) darkness "The figures in these paintings of his …; and are made with rare mastery, and composed of fast, and disdainful, but artful touches, launched with a certain skill, which is difficult to explain, nor can be well imagined by those who do not see it." [R. Soprani, C.G. Ratti, Lives of Genoese painters, sculptors and architects, Volume II, Genoa 1797, p. 157] An artistic personality emerges deeply critical of the "hypocritical" society of his time, in which a growing secular and Enlightenment spirit was beginning to spread; in his scenes, Magnasco often makes satirical use of religious figures, monks or nuns, placed in ambiguous or even violent contexts, amid tortures, penances, and visions of a suffering, marginalized, abandoned humanity. Visually different and in terms of atmosphere are the paintings made in collaboration with the painter Antonio Francesco Peruzzini (Ancona 1643 – Milan 1724), a landscape painter specializing in views dominated by natural elements, trees shaken by the wind, stormy skies and seas, ruins, and vistas; within these landscapes, Magnasco inserted his small and unmistakable figures (religious people, beggars, penitents, etc.). This small and previously unpublished canvas depicts a "concertino" set in a dark theatrical space, perhaps a cellar, dominated by brown and somber tones. The figures emerge in contrast thanks to rapid bright lines that emphasize their movement; in the foreground, a man plays an oboe and is accompanied by a little monkey sitting on a table playing a flute. A curious spectator observes the scene with a surprised expression. The little monkey, like other recurring animals in Magnasco's paintings (magpies, cats, etc.), often takes on a precise symbolic meaning; in fact, it represents a negative allegory of man used in a satirical manner, a subtle moral reflection aimed at highlighting the vanity and hypocrisy of society. Minimal size, maximum charm!!! Dimensions: canvas 44x34.5 cm - frame 58x48.5 cm