Pittura preziosa
Paintings on stone, copper and glass
Curated by:
Michele Drascek
Duccio K. Marignoli
Simonetta Prosperi Valenti Rodinò
Works from:
Fondazione Marignoli di Montecorona, Spoleto
Collezione già Palazzo Valenti, Trevi
Fondazione Camillo Caetani, Roma
June 24th – October 8th 2023
Spoleto, Galleria d’Arte Moderna di Palazzo Collicola, Appartamento Nobile
Opening:
Saturday, June 24th, 11am
Since the sixteenth century, great significance has been given to pictures painted on intrinsically valuable surfaces such as stone (marble, alabaster, semi-precious supports), copper and glass. This is an eccentric, intriguing form of painting, often housed in private cabinets, with works becoming objects of wonder beyond their quality as art, and which we have here called Pittura preziosa. The genre, fueled by collectors of rarefied, dazzling pieces, now attracts the growing interest of scholars who have recently made it the subject of some highly successful exhibitions.
Pittura preziosa offers an opportunity to explore this theme through the display of over forty works, mostly unpublished, from the collections of The Marignoli di Montecorona Foundation in Spoleto and the ancient Valenti family of Trevi, with the addition of a precious alabaster generously lent by the Fondazione Camillo Caetani in Rome. The paintings, often small in size, range from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century and provide a fascinating look into this special artistic genre through a variety of artists, some more familiar than others, including Boccaccio Boccaccino (traditionally considered the author of a painting on copper), the rare Sigismondo Laire, the Umbrians Providoni and Refini, the celebrated painters Mastelletta, Cavalier d’Arpino, Lanfranco, and Filippo Lauri, and the lesser-known Wals and Mosman.
English 
Italian 
