Description
Workshop of Pietro Longhi (Venice 1702 – Venice 1785) – The Declaration of Love.
Oil on canvas, unframed.
The painting reproduces the composition by Pietro Longhi (Venice 1702 – Venice 1785) held at the Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle. Pietro Longhi was the leading interpreter of genre painting in eighteenth-century Venice, renowned for his sharp and affectionate observation of the customs and rituals of Venetian society. His interior scenes, conversations, visits and domestic encounters, unfold in bourgeois or aristocratic settings, populated by elegantly dressed figures engaged in the routines of daily life. The scene depicts a young lady in a wide white dress at the centre of the composition, accompanied by a gentleman in a richly embroidered coat who addresses her with deference. On the table stands a reel winder with a gilded base, a domestic object recurring in Longhi’s repertoire. To the right, an elderly woman and a young girl share the reading of a book. Longhi’s workshop replicated the master’s compositions with variants to meet the widespread collecting demand of eighteenth-century Venice.
Condition report: Relined canvas. Good state of conservation of the painted surface, with signs of ageing and wear.
