Aniello Falcone
(1607 - 1656) |
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battle scenes Art Work
| Name: |
Aniello Falcone |
| Gender: |
Male |
| Place of Birth: |
Naples, Italy |
| Nationality: |
Italian |
| Birth: |
1607 |
| Death: |
1656 |
| Website: |
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| Past Auctions: |
Click Here |
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Quick Facts
| Known For: |
battle scenes |
| Medium: |
oil painting |
| Method: |
oil painting |
| Style: |
Baroque |
| Fine Art Profession(s): |
Painter
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Biography
Aniello Falcone is today best known for his paintings of battle scenes, reaching such acclaim in the genre as to be dubbed "L' Oracolo delle Battaglie." His other works also include histories and religious scenes, but are of little critical note.
It is generally accepted theory that Falcone was a pupil of Jose de Ribera. Documents or signatures from the 1640s serve as signposts for Falcone's activities on religious subjects, notably his efforts for the Sam' Agata chapel in S. Paolo Maggiore, Naples, and his Rest on the Flight into Egypt, signed and dated 1641, Naples, Cathedral Sacristy. By then he had probably been producing battle pictures for about ten years. These were subjects that brought him international recognition. The Dutch dealer and collector Gaspar Roomer took a great interest in Falcone and introduced his work to many European collectors. Philip IV of Spain commissioned Falcone to produce subjects from Roman history for the Buen Retiro Madrid, Prado. In these and other battle pictures, the influence of Castiglione has been noted.
The chronology and the extent of Falcone's entire oeuvre is, however, still problematical, owing to the absence of adequate dates and documents as well as to the similarity between Falcone's work and that of his pupil and follower, Andrea di Lione. Contemporary scholars tend to accept the date 1631 as the correct reading on his Battle between Turks and Christians Paris, Louvre, which would make this his earliest surviving dated battle picture. Another Battle Scene signed and dated 1646, Milan, private collection is also accepted. There is some speculation that Falcone may have produced still lifes, but this is not certain. Among the later works of his career are the badly damaged frescoes of the Life of St. Ignatius in the Gesu Nuovo, which are now thought to have been produced before 1652.
How Falcone's development and stylistic sources can be understood is strongly dependent on the particular examples accepted into his oeuvre. His battle pictures reflect his response to Castiglione, while such religious works as St. Lucy Distributing Arms, suggest that Falcone may have seen works by the Le Nain brothers in France the same work has produced assertions that Falcone was either responding to or resisting the influence of the Bamboccianti in Naples. |
Samples of Work
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