The Lamentation, Signed & Dated 1832, Gustav Baumgarten (1795-C.1855)

Oil on canvas.

Before an Italianate landscape and under a moody sky the Virgin Mary flanked by two angels mourns over the reposing body of Christ. This exquisite and graceful work delicately depicts this popular subject from the middle ages onward, the Lamentation. It has been signed and dated ‘G. Baumgarten. Bologna. 1832’. Considering the exceptional technical quality of the painting it is not surprising that Baumgarten was held in such high esteem. The faces of all the figures are anatomically impeccable and the chiaroscuro technique is very effective at creating drama. The composition is after The Mendicanti Pieta by Guido Reni (1575-1642), commissioned in 1616 for the high altar of the church Santa Maria Della Pieta in Bologna (now in the Pinacoteca Nazionale, Bologna). Reni’s influence was to extend well into the 18th and 19th centuries as seen here.

Gustav Baumgarten (1795 - c.1855) was a German portraitist and history painter born in Dresden appreciated for his portraits and brilliant copies of old masters. He studied in 1811 at the Dresden Art Academy under Christian Ferdinand Hartmann. In 1823 he travelled to Rome where he stayed until 1830 and completed his artistic training, and after he worked in Bologna. The artist lexicon Nagler wrote approvingly in 1835 "... has already produced images that have great merit in the invention and design and no less in the drawing, as to the colour are excellent. ... He painted several portraits and copies for good masters and also showed in own compositions a fine talent. He currently lives in Bologna.”

Measurements: Height 95cm, Width 103cm framed (Height 37.5”, Width 40.5” framed)

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