Stefano Camogli known as Camoglino (ca. 1610 -?), Still life with dog and parrot

Stefano Camogli known as Camoglino (ca. 1610 -?)

Still life with a dog and a parrot

Oil on canvas, 91 x 126 cm – C:108 x 145

This painting is recognized as an autograph by Stefano Camogli, known as Camoglino (active in Genoa from 1616 to 1638), one of the most esteemed specialists in still life painting in Genoese Baroque painting. Carlo Giuseppe Ratti writes about him in the second volume of the Lives; the historian adds some information about him in the pages dedicated to the life of Domenico Piola, his brother-in-law since Camogli married his sister Angiola. Here he writes: “An excellent painter of arabesques, foliage, flowers and fruit, and suchlike,” expert in designing ephemera, who, however, “not knowing…how to paint figures, made use of a young Piola for this: and since Cammogli had frequent opportunities, Piola had the opportunity to practice handling gouache colors.” Further information on him can be found in the manuscript version of the Lives, which initially included a section dedicated to Camogli alone. We thus learn his approximate date of birth, around 1610; furthermore, it is clear that he was older than his brother-in-law Domenico, since the latter trained with him while still young. It is Ratti who provides us with the fundamental information on Camogli's apprenticeship in the workshop of the Flemish painter Jan Roos (Antwerp 1591 – Genoa 1638), a Flemish painter who lived in Genoa, where he had made a name for himself and specialized in still lifes and market scenes.

In the large workshop of Roos Camogli he immediately demonstrated great mastery, especially in the treatment of floral pieces, a talent for which the artist defines him as “so famous in flowers”.

And it is from this scant biographical information that the rewriting of Camoglino's catalogue began, especially by examining his stylistic inflections. His brushwork can be seen in both Roos's and Piola's works. See, for example, Roos's canvases of Nebuchadnezzar and the Golden Idol and Cyrus Sacrificing to the Bel Idol, where the offering to the pagan god is marked by a large vase of flowers. Characterized by a more vibrant palette, the vibrant colors play on a treatment that emphasizes the thick layers of color, leaving the brushstrokes clearly visible.

Camogli collaborated assiduously with his brother-in-law Piola, the former responsible for still lifes and the latter for figures. Inventory records in his name state that, as early as the 17th century, many paintings were executed with Piola, such as the Baby Jesus in a Garland of Flowers from the Museum of the Linguistic Academy in Genoa, the frontal with the Infant Saint John among Flowers and Garlands from the Cathedral of San Lorenzo, and the Allegory of Peace and Abundance, attributed by some solely to Piola but now reinterpreted in light of their collaboration. As Piola became famous, especially after the plague of 1657, which left him free to pursue his work, it is easy to imagine that Camogli became increasingly involved in his brother-in-law's work. Considered a highly skilled artist of floral garlands, Stefano Camogli also worked with the painter Gioacchino Assereto: the Saint Joseph with the Child from the Pinacoteca di Brera may be attributed to their collaboration.

Camogli also designed ephemeral decorations, such as the funeral catafalque for Philip IV, executed in July 1667, and that of Cardinal Stefano Durazzo. He is also recorded as a designer of patterns for embroidered floral compositions; scholar Marzia Cataldi Gallo has in fact hypothesized the existence of an embroiderers' workshop, as yet unnamed, but undoubtedly connected to the Piola family.

Stefano Camogli was a master of flower paintings, fruit still lifes, and animals, which he painted with remarkable authenticity. His style is characterized by bright, vividly contrasting colors, a sumptuously monumental conception, a softness of touch, and meticulous detail, all of which are reminiscent of Flemish influences. He was particularly skilled at depicting animals in an expressive and realistic manner. He likely had access to the series of animal drawings by the Italian painter Sinibaldo Scorza, known primarily for his small, mythological paintings in which animals play a prominent role, and for the body of drawings that were kept in the workshop of his brother-in-law Domenico Piola.

This work fits perfectly into Stefano Camogli's oeuvre; the floral composition, rendered in bright colors and the thick, textured brushstrokes, are hallmarks of his style, as is the attention to detail in the rendering of the pomegranates and artichokes, as well as the chestnuts and their shells, rendered needle by needle. The presence of two animals, a dog and a parrot, can also be explained by his knowledge of the works of Sinibaldo Scorza.

The object is in good condition

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