Irises in a glass jar, a lizard and a caterpillar on a tabletop

Details

Paolo Porpora (Naples 1617-1670-80 Rome or Naples)
Irises in a glass jar, a lizard and a caterpillar on a tabletop
oil on canvas
15¼ x 19 in. (38.7 x 48.3 cm.)

Literature

Italian still life painting from three centuries, The Silvano Lodi collection, exhibition catalogue, Jerusalem, 1994, no. 74.
Italian still life painting, from the Silvano Lodi collection, exhibition catalogue, Tokyo, 2001, p. 65, no. 27.
S. Dathe, Natura morta italiana, Italienische stilleben aus vier Jahrhunderten, Sammlung Silvano Lodi, exhibition catalogue, Ravensburg, pp. 24 and 44.

Exhibited

Jerusalem, The Israel Museum, Italian still life painting from three centuries, The Silvano Lodi collection, June 1994, no. 74.
Tokyo, Seiji Togo Memorial Museum of Art, Italian still life painting, from The Silvano Lodi collection, 28 April-26 May 2001, no. 27; and on tour in Japan.
Ravensburg, Schloss Achberg, Natura morta italiana: Italienische stilleben aus vier Jahrhunderten, sammlung Silvano Lodi, 11 April-12 October 2003, no. 44.

Lot Essay

The Irises in a jar shows the northern side of Porpora's artistic nature. The simplified composition, muted palette, highlights gleaming on the vase, and meticulously painted lizard all point to a knowledge of the type of still life that originated with Ambrosius Bosschaert in Antwerp in the late sixteenth century. Early Flemish still life painting was highly prized in Milan. The presence of both butterflies and a caterpillar may allude to various stages of life and its ultimate transience and could be read as a reference to the Resurrection.

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