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Antonio Cifrondi (Clusone, 1656 - Brescia, 1730)
Peasant, 1700-1730
Oil painting on canvas
84x105 cm
Work without frame.
Against a sparse, flattened bluish background, the only reference to an external space, the figure of an elderly, bent woman emerges from the shadows. Her forehead is furrowed with wrinkles, and her strong arms—worn by hard work in the fields—define her role as a countrywoman. With a sober, naturalistic composition, the woman can be considered the true protagonist of the painting, even though, in reading her languid gaze—weakened by tiredness and age—the viewer is invited to focus on the white bird, delicately perched on a perch filled with hay.
The image of the woman is modeled with broad, textured brushstrokes imbued with sparse, warm colors, clearly visible in the rosy hues of the flesh, complemented by the earthy shadows that help bring out the figure's plasticity. The work's distinctive features and formal characteristics are influenced by Lombard painting, bringing it closer to the secular subjects so popular in the final decades of the 17th century. However, the stylistic signature revealed by the chromatic sobriety allows us to attribute the work to Antonio Cifrondi of Bergamo and place it within the first three decades of the 18th century.
In fact, after having been in France, he settled permanently in Brescia, remembering his acquaintance with Le Brun and the direct vision of nature and everyday life that inspired 17th-century transalpine painting.
He then devoted himself to composing paintings where the humblest classes are the protagonists: figures of the poor, beggars, peasants, etc. The painting in question is an expression of this period, created with a rapid technique, with broad brushstrokes, determined and confident.
In fact, after having been in France, he settled permanently in Brescia, remembering his acquaintance with Le Brun and the direct vision of nature and everyday life that inspired 17th-century transalpine painting.
He then devoted himself to composing paintings where the humblest classes are the protagonists: figures of the poor, beggars, peasants, etc. The painting in question is an expression of this period, created with a rapid technique, with broad brushstrokes, determined and confident.
ASORstudio
€ 2.000,00
Starting price