X-Paintings-and-Drawings-Marty-de-Cambiaire

Farinola collection – rather reminds of the Maenads or Bacchae,
which is to say those women who formed Bacchus’ cortege together
with Pan and the satyrs and indulged in drunkenness and
frenzied trances. Holding a piece of goldsmithery most likely
with wine, this Maenad is not in the least alarmed by the presence
of the satyr but seems to be inviting or welcoming him.
This type of subject, full of erotic innuendos and references to
the sensual Antiquity was a delight for erudite collectors and
hedonists of the time.
1 Francesca Baldassari, Simone Pignoni, Florence Artema, 2008.
2 Filippo Baldinucci, Notizie de’ professori del disegno da Cimabue in
qua…, Florence, 1702, p. 142.
6 SÉBASTIEN BOURDON
Montpellier 1616 - Paris 1671
Bambochade
Oil on copper
294 x 372 mm (11 5 /8 x 14 3 /4 in.)
Sent to Paris at the age of seven years old with his painter uncle,
whose name appears in biographical sources as Barthélémy,
Bourdon trained with him for several years and then succeeded
in being hired for different decorating works around Bordeaux
and Toulouse. There are no known works from this period
stretching until 1636, the year of his twentieth birthday and
his departure for Italy. However, his sojourn in Rome came to
an end relatively soon thereafter, as less than two years following
his 1636 arrival, around the second half of 1637, Bourdon
hastily set out on the journey back to Paris. A painter named
Rieux threatened to denounce him as a heretic. The protestant
Bourdon preferred to return to France to avoid any risk of the
Inquisitorial court.
This stay of a little less than two years was clearly an opportunity
for Sébastien Bourdon to expand his repertoire and experiment
with styles and subject matters that were still alien to Parisian
artistic milieu. His biographer Guillet de Saint-Georges reports
that while Bourdon was working for a merchant he “very easily
imitated every artwork he saw and got quite into the manner
of each painter.” Thus owing to “his facility with the brush,”
Bourdon seems to have made counterfeits or started working
“in the genre of” imitating the painters then in vogue in order to
earn a living and make a name for himself. The genre of bambochade
had not reached France yet; these paintings of small size
with realistic subjects treated in humorous fashion were very
much appreciated by Roman art lovers. An examination of the
catalogue raisonné of Bourdon’s works displays that he took a
certain pleasure in exploring and elaborating all sub-genres brilliantly:
paupers, gypsies, brawling soldiers, taverns, brigands in
ambush, guardrooms... He represented the entire Roman underworld
following the fashion established with great success by
Pieter van Lear and the Bamboccianti. On the occasion of his
hasty return, Bourdon brought this style to France and continued
to people his works, with, brigands, soldiers and paupers in
the atmosphere of crepuscular light. These works were destined
for knowledgeable collectors, eager for novelties imported from
Italy.
However, in France the style of Bourdon’s bambochades
evolved to suit the French taste and fit the French context. In
addition to the influence of Bamboccianti, the artist drew on the
work of Le Nain brothers, like in Mendiants près d’une chapelle
(Beggars near a Chapel) (Paris, Louvre), and that of Teniers and
Ostade, which is demonstrated by the introduction of still lifes
and characters with unpleasant smirks. And once France entered
the Thirty Years’ War, the subjects of soldiers and guardrooms
gradually replaced gypsies and fortune-tellers.
As David Mandrella suggested, the present painting likely dates
to the period immediately following his return to France, around
1640. The setting of the ruins recalling the Colosseum is inspired
by the artist’s stay in Rome, whereas the subject of the soldiers
and the colouring, rather grey than brown, belong to the French
period. Lit by the moonlight, a group of soldiers is playing cards
on the left, while on the right, the most persistent drinkers are
bunching around a barrel. In the background, the glow of a fire
reveals other silhouettes. The ensemble of the composition, the
colouring and atmosphere can be related to two works on the
subject of guardrooms reproduced in the catalogue raisonné of
the artist’s work 16 . There, Bourdon develops the same vocabulary:
ruins, fire, a dog, a soldier lying in the centre. The expressions
of the characters are treated with great finesse, which
once more recall the Bamboccianti who worked in Rome, for
example, Andries Both, whom he might have met. However, the
savagery of the Roman scenes is attenuated, which is typical of
the years that the artist spent in Paris.
1 Jacques Thuillier, Sébastien Bourdon 1616 – 1671, Paris, Arthéna,
2000, p. 186 – 187, n° 43 – 44, illustrated.
7 GIUSEPPE ROMANI
Como 1654 - Modena 1727
Chronos or Allegory of Time
Oil on canvas
101 x 84 cm (39 3 /4 x 33 1 /16 in.)
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Galerie Sarti, Le XVIIe siècle, racines et développements, Paris,
2003, p. 148, illustrated and identified as a St. Jerome by Daniele
Benati.
From the 18 th century, Giuseppe Romani – who should not be
confused with his homonym from Bologna who spent his career
in Madrid until 1684 17 – has only really been known for his gen-
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PAINTINGS & DRAWINGS