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North Italian School, 18th Century — A Trompe L'oeil With An Engraving On Pope Alexander Viii, A Necklace Watch, Letters, And Other Items; A Trompe L'oeil With A Music Sheet, A Drawing, Lunar Calendar, And Other Items
North Italian School, 18th Century

A Trompe L'oeil With An Engraving On Pope Alexander Viii, A Necklace Watch, Letters, And Other Items; A Trompe L'oeil With A Music Sheet, A Drawing, Lunar Calendar, And Other Items

These two captivating trompe l'oeil paintings by an eighteenth-century North Italian master display a masterful illusionistic technique, convincingly simulating the appearance of everyday objects arranged against flat surfaces. The first canvas presents an engraving of Pope Alexander VIII alongside a necklace watch, correspondence, and various other items, while its companion piece features a music sheet, a drawing, a lunar calendar, and additional objects. Together, the pair showcases the period's fascination with visual deception, demonstrating the artist's remarkable ability to blur the boundary between painted representation and tangible reality.

Medium
a pair, both oil on canvas and unframed

🔨 Auction Lot

Old Masters Online

January 21, 2019

Estimate: $30,000$40,000

Lot 1021

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About this work

North Italian School, 18th Century, A Trompe L'oeil With An Engraving On Pope Alexander Viii, A Necklace Watch, Letters, And Other Items; A Trompe L'oeil With A Music Sheet, A Drawing, Lunar Calendar, And Other Items

These two captivating trompe l'oeil paintings by an eighteenth-century North Italian master display a masterful illusionistic technique, convincingly simulating the appearance of everyday objects arranged against flat surfaces. The first canvas presents an engraving of Pope Alexander VIII alongside a necklace watch, correspondence, and various other items, while its companion piece features a music sheet, a drawing, a lunar calendar, and additional objects. Together, the pair showcases the period's fascination with visual deception, demonstrating the artist's remarkable ability to blur the boundary between painted representation and tangible reality.

Medium
a pair, both oil on canvas and unframed
Seen at
Sotheby's, New York, London, Hong Kong, Paris

Related themes

Illusionistic Art, Muted Earth Tones, Northern Italian School, Vanitas Imagery, Baroque Style, Diptych, 18th Century Painting, Italian Old Masters, Trompe-l'oeil, Antiquarian Objects, Oil on Canvas, Still Life