Giacomo Francesco Cipper, known as Todeschini

Giacomo Francesco Cipper, known as Todeschini (Feldkirch, 1664 – Milan, 1736)

The fish seller

Oil on canvas, 64 x 83 cm – With frame, 85 x 101 cm

The crisp port air that saturates the present scene renders every small detail with vibrant rendering, even the still wet scales of the fish on display. A family of fishmongers is portrayed while carrying out their daily tasks. If the little son is distracted and the wife patiently peels some frogs (in one bag it is the initial product, in another, curiously, the result of the skinning) the head of the family is slicing a large fish for a customer with a tricorn hat firmly placed on his head. The look of understanding between the two, as well as the gestures used and the extraordinary veins painted on the seller's forearm accentuate the almost Verga-like realism gushing from the whole scene: note the lively cheeks of the representatives and the hoard of hooks to display the merchandise hanging, neatly placed at the corner of the table.

The absolute lack of pietism with which the excellent artist, Giacomo Francesco Cipper known as Todeschini (1664-1736) treats his effigies, once again demonstrates his artistic objective: to render the beauty of concrete life with lucid pragmatism. Unlike many of his contemporaries who turned scenes of common life into melancholy pathos, Todeschini faithfully clung to a lively, optimistic rendering of life, illuminating in his paintings with peasants, card players and musicians. The artist proposed to renew the seventeenth-century tradition of bamboccianti and to reread in a personal key the examples of Monsù Bernardo and Alessandro Magnasco, with the ambition of transposing their ideas on a 'monumental' spirit, dedicating himself at the same time to a realistic definition of everyday objects, foods and furnishings, reaching the maximum consequences of the comic and grotesque tradition. Austrian by birth but Lombard by adoption, in 1696 Todeschini was already resident in Milan, an essential artistic hub for subsequently reaching the cities of Bergamo and Brescia, where he was active. Cipper was able to profoundly renew the contemporary seventeenth-century tradition of the Bamboccianti, revolutionizing it through a personal figurativism characterized by the plasticity of colors and frank expressiveness. He began to portray the varied humanity of the common people with a natural propensity: these representations, however, are not immune to a good dose of irony, satirical verve and, sometimes, a clear licentiousness, as important are the reforms affecting dialect theatre, especially Milanese, which seems to accompany the evolution that takes place between Todeschini and Ceruti.

The vibrant brushstrokes veiled in realism and pathism are found in other works by Todeschini now in private collections, such as the Market Scene (Zeri collection), where the figures, baskets and still lifes of vegetables recall the stylistic features of the scene in question; again, a market scene in a private collection; finally, the physiognomy of the boy with his hand supporting his head can also be seen in a painting this time depicting a young man, also in a private collection. Lastly, see the genre scene preserved in the Ala Ponzone Museum in Cremona.

With Ars Antiqua it is possible to defer all amounts up to €7.500 at ZERO INTEREST, for a total of 15 INSTALLMENTS.

E.g. Total €4.500 = Monthly installment €300 for 15 months.

E.g. Total €3.600 = Monthly installment €720 for 5 months.

For amounts exceeding €7.500 or for a longer period of time (over 15 installments), we can provide a personalized payment.

Contact us directly to get the best quote.

LIVE

– SUNDAY 17.00pm – 21.00pm Dig. terr. 126 + 813 SKY

– Streaming on our website www.arsantiquasrl.com and on our social networks Facebook and Youtube

All the works proposed by Ars Antiqua are sold accompanied by a certificate of authenticity in accordance with the law and an accurate information sheet.

It is possible to see the works directly at the showroom gallery in Milan, in via Pisacane 55 and 57.

We personally organize transport and deliveries of the works, both for Italy and abroad.