A Study in Memory
2.
I first saw this work in an exposition in the KMSKA (Antwerp) in 2004. It was hanging alone against a big wall covered with black velvet. Light was perfect. I fell in love with this painting because of its composition (the back of Venus)--the braided hair the pearls and the beautiful light. There and then I decided I wanted to paint something similar. At the time I did not buy the catalogue of the exposition.
Instead I stored the image in my head or at least I thought I had it stored.
I first saw this work in an exposition in the KMSKA (Antwerp) in 2004. It was hanging alone against a big wall covered with black velvet. Light was perfect. I fell in love with this painting because of its composition (the back of Venus)--the braided hair the pearls and the beautiful light. There and then I decided I wanted to paint something similar. At the time I did not buy the catalogue of the exposition.
Instead I stored the image in my head or at least I thought I had it stored.
Title: Venus and Cupid kissing
Artist Giovanni Battista Paggi (1554-1627)
Date: 16th-17th century.
Technique: Oil on canvas
Artist Giovanni Battista Paggi (1554-1627)
Date: 16th-17th century.
Technique: Oil on canvas
Giovanni Battista Paggi (1554-1627)
was an Italian painter from Genoa born into the privileged household of Pellegro Paggi a wealthy merchant. Trained under local masters Paggi’s early talent was shaped by Genoa’s vibrant cultural life. However in 1579 following a fatal altercation with a patron over payment he was banished from the city--a turning point that led him on a rich artistic journey through Italy.
During his exile Paggi worked in Venice Rome Florence and Pisa absorbing diverse regional styles. In Florence he painted a fresco in the Great Cloister of Santa Maria Novella portraying a miracle by Saint Catherine of Siena. There he studied the works of Michelangelo and Raphael refining a style that blended Renaissance clarity with early Baroque drama.
Paggi’s works are known for their emotional depth strong composition and vivid characterizations. His subjects were often religious or historical as seen in “The Madonna and Child with Saints “The Annunciation " and the frescoes of Palazzo Spinola in Genoa. He likely received commissions from important figures including Isabella Appiani Princess of Piombino.
Eventually pardoned and welcomed back to Genoa--thanks in part to his ties with the Doria family--Paggi became a leading figure in the city’s art scene. He established a respected academy mentoring a generation of Genoese artists. He died in 1627 remembered not only for his refined and expressive style but also for his pivotal role in shaping Genoese art.
During his exile Paggi worked in Venice Rome Florence and Pisa absorbing diverse regional styles. In Florence he painted a fresco in the Great Cloister of Santa Maria Novella portraying a miracle by Saint Catherine of Siena. There he studied the works of Michelangelo and Raphael refining a style that blended Renaissance clarity with early Baroque drama.
Paggi’s works are known for their emotional depth strong composition and vivid characterizations. His subjects were often religious or historical as seen in “The Madonna and Child with Saints “The Annunciation " and the frescoes of Palazzo Spinola in Genoa. He likely received commissions from important figures including Isabella Appiani Princess of Piombino.
Eventually pardoned and welcomed back to Genoa--thanks in part to his ties with the Doria family--Paggi became a leading figure in the city’s art scene. He established a respected academy mentoring a generation of Genoese artists. He died in 1627 remembered not only for his refined and expressive style but also for his pivotal role in shaping Genoese art.