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Lot Essay
A native Neapolitan, Falcone trained briefly under Jusepe de Ribera, where no doubt lie the roots of his powerful brushwork, strong contrasts of light and dark, and harsh realism in subject matter. His early works are largely influenced by the works of Pieter van Laer, Michelangelo Cerquozzi and Diego Velázquez’s Roman period, most of which are genre scenes or early Neapolitan interpretations of bambocciate.
Falcone’s métier, however, was battle painting. It is often believed that Aniello captained the Compagnia della Morte, the band of artists who were revolutionaries by day and painters by night, in the 1647 Masaniello uprising against Spanish Rule. Although it seems the story is not founded on fact, arguably the foundations could be seen in his paintings. What was exceptional in his work was the heightened sense of reality in his depictions of the battleground, as opposed to the often heroic and glorified images that had come before. Often, such as with the present lot, the fight is not a historical event but a vivid description of the reality of war, as can be seen in the intense expressions of fear and pain in the figures, their highly modelled twisted torsos heightened by the glints of weaponry and armour throughout the composition.
Aniello’s accomplishments led the genre into great popularity in the mid-seventeenth century, to which his followers gave him the epithet ‘l’Oracolo delle Battaglie’. As his workshop grew to take on the growing commissions, it became a school for the next generation of Neapolitan artists including Andrea di Leone and Salvator Rosa.
We are grateful to Professor Riccardo Lattuada for confirming the attribution on the basis of photographs.
Falcone’s métier, however, was battle painting. It is often believed that Aniello captained the Compagnia della Morte, the band of artists who were revolutionaries by day and painters by night, in the 1647 Masaniello uprising against Spanish Rule. Although it seems the story is not founded on fact, arguably the foundations could be seen in his paintings. What was exceptional in his work was the heightened sense of reality in his depictions of the battleground, as opposed to the often heroic and glorified images that had come before. Often, such as with the present lot, the fight is not a historical event but a vivid description of the reality of war, as can be seen in the intense expressions of fear and pain in the figures, their highly modelled twisted torsos heightened by the glints of weaponry and armour throughout the composition.
Aniello’s accomplishments led the genre into great popularity in the mid-seventeenth century, to which his followers gave him the epithet ‘l’Oracolo delle Battaglie’. As his workshop grew to take on the growing commissions, it became a school for the next generation of Neapolitan artists including Andrea di Leone and Salvator Rosa.
We are grateful to Professor Riccardo Lattuada for confirming the attribution on the basis of photographs.