Antonio Rasio (Brescia, post 1677 – pre 1699), Composition with bread and salami, meat, fruit and a hoopoe in a landscape

Antonio Rasio (Brescia, post 1677 – before 1699)

Composition with bread and salami, meat, fruit and a hoopoe in a landscape

oil on canvas 61×76,5 cm

Frame, 73.5 x 89 cm

Criticism sheet Prof. Alberto Crispo

This evocative canvas is attributed to the Brescian master Antonio Rasio (active post-1677–c. 1700) and is a fine example of late Baroque Lombard still life. The painting differs from Rasio's more well-known Arcimboldo cycles, such as the celebrated Four Seasons preserved at the Pinacoteca Tosio Martinengo, to fit into the tradition of pantry still lifes, a popular genre in the Po Valley that celebrated the abundance of agricultural and hunting produce. The work orchestrates a rich variety of objects against a natural backdrop. The focal point, on the right, is the large quarter of meat hanging from a tree trunk, treated with strong textural realism in shades of dark red and the white of the fat. On the left, bread and sliced ​​salami are carefully arranged on a rocky shelf, introducing a contrast of textures and colors. In the foreground are three red fruits (apples or peaches) still attached to the branch, a symbol of vitality and freshness. In the lower right corner is a hoopoe, portrayed with meticulous attention to detail in its feathers and crest.

There is no reliable documentary information about the Brescian painter Antonio Rasio. His only works so far definitively listed are held at the Pinacoteca Tosio Martinengo in Brescia. The only painting he signed is Still Life with Musical Instrument, Relief, and Flowers, created in 1677. In this elaborate composition, Rasio depicts a marble tabletop with historiated sides (decorated with relief scenes), specifically the Sacrifice of Iphigenia at Aulis. A carpet and a cushion are draped over the tabletop; upon them rest a spinet with an open music book and a small lapdog. On the right are a vase of flowers, a globe with the celestial sphere in front of an astronomy book, and a plate filled with peaches and grapes. Rasio's most famous cycle of works is the series The Four Seasons, created around 1685-1695 and also held at the Pinacoteca Tosio Martinengo in Brescia. This series bears a close relationship to the inventions of Giuseppe Arcimboldo, the celebrated painter active in the second half of the 16th century at the Austrian and Bohemian courts. Arcimboldo achieved success by creating a particular type of portrait composed entirely of juxtaposed plants or objects. Rasio's depictions of the seasons are inspired by Ovid's Metamorphoses, whose themes were later reported and codified, for example, in Cesare Ripa's Iconologia of 1593. Unlike Arcimboldo's subjects, which are all half-length, Rasio's personifications of Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter are depicted full-length and set in a lakeside landscape. It should not be overlooked, however, that much of the painter's repertoire appears to be influenced by artists active in Rome, such as Antonio Tibaldi and Carlo Manieri. Furthermore, the four seasons mentioned above also appear to be inspired by the compositions created by the Stanchi family, Roman still-life painters. It is therefore probable that the painter became acquainted with the Roman world of still life, perhaps during a study trip, and then reworked it in his homeland.

The unpublished painting is an important acquisition to expand the painter's catalogue, as it demonstrates his versatility beyond the elaboration of still lifes with carpets and the experiments inspired by Arcimboldo.