Giuseppe Bartolomeo CHIARI (Lucca or Rome 1654-1727 Rome)

Circa 1660-80

Alpheus and Arethusa

Oil on canvas, oval, 132 x 91 cm

Collector's wax seal on the chassis

PROVENANCE

-Private collection Germany until March 2012;

-Acquired by the current owner, private collection, France.

DESCRIPTION

According to Ovid's Metamorphoses, the beautiful nymph Arethusa was surprised and pursued by the river god Alpheus while bathing in a clear stream. Diana took pity on her and hid her in a cloud, but succumbing to Alpheus's persistence, she eventually transformed Arethusa into a spring that flowed underground and emerged at Ortygia, the small island that is the historical center of the city of Syracuse in Sicily.

THE ARTIST

Born in Rome, Giuseppe Bartolomeo Chiari was one of Carlo Maratta's principal pupils, entering the workshop in 1666 at the age of twelve. Chiari trained in the classical milieu, becoming one of the leading representatives of the Roman Academy. Thanks to the patronage of his master, whose official successor he soon was considered, he received several important commissions.

His figurative repertoire embodies the ideals of official Roman classical culture at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, fusing various stylistic traits inherited from Guido Reni, Carlo Maratta, Pietro da Cortona, the Carracci, and Correggio. Fully established since 1685, and having become a member of the Accademia di San Luca in 1697, he reproduced the master's manner in his painting, but softening the official grandeur in favor of more intimate tones, particularly in smaller works, thus marking the transitional point between late Baroque and nascent Rococo tastes.

In 1686, he completed his first public commission: frescoes of the Nativity of the Virgin and the Adoration of the Magi for the Marchionni Chapel in Santa Maria del Suffragio. In the following years, the artist received commissions from many prominent Roman patrons of the time, including the Barberini and Colonna families, and from Pope Clement XI, for whom he executed a Saint Clement in Glory for the church of the same name. As Maratta's successor, Chiari's success extended beyond his hometown. His work was particularly popular with several leading English collectors of the period, including Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, known as "Architect Earl," and John, 5th Earl of Exeter, who acquired no fewer than four of the artist's works for his collection at Burghley House. Chiari was the principal of the Accademia di San Luca between 1723 and 1725 and counted the English architect William Kent among his students.

THE WORK

The previously unknown painting depicting Alpheus and Arethusa is an addition to the oeuvre of Giuseppe Chiari, a testament to his collaboration with the master Carlo Maratta. The oval format and dimensions of the work are recurring themes in the artist's oeuvre. The subject matter was familiar to Maratta, who painted it several times around 1650-1670. Chiari was likely both a witness to and a collaborator of these works, as Maratta was then emerging in Rome as one of the most promising artists.

The work is of particular interest as it appears to be an initial attempt in the development of a new composition. At least four significant changes of mind are evident and clearly visible in the infrared photograph. (fig. 1) The first and most demonstrative line begins on the right side of Arethusa's abdomen and follows the entire length of his right leg to the tips of his toes; a second runs the length of his left leg; a third extends down his left shin to the tips of his toes; a fourth, like the others, covers Alpheus's right foot; and finally, a more subtle line is visible on the outline of Diana's face. After this initial sketch, the artist then shifted all the limbs to the left side of the composition. Examination has revealed that the painting, as it appears today, is the final result of several creative stages, suggesting the work of an artist developing a composition rather than the execution of a studio piece.