Circle of GUIDO RENI (Calvenzano di Vergato, Bologna, 1575 - Bologna, 1642).

Circle of GUIDO RENI (Calvenzano di Vergato, Bologna, 1575 - Bologna, 1642). "Saint". Oil on canvas. Relined It presents faults and repainting. Measurements: 47,5 x 34,5 cm. Female portrait of short bust, where the artist portrays in a monumental way the face of a saint, which is deduced by the halo that is placed next to her head. The work follows aesthetic models close to the work of Guido Reni, who produced portraits of similar subject matter on numerous occasions, with numerous female saints as the protagonists. Furthermore, in this work, we see the monumentalisation of the figure mentioned above, a soft treatment of the forms, with tight, fleshy lips, as well as a very effective light treatment, similar characteristics to the works of Guido Reni. Due to the lack of iconographic attributes, it is difficult to identify the saint, whose only singular characteristic is the presence of a pearl earring. The undisputed master of Roman-Bolognese classicism alongside Albani and Domenichino, Guido Reni was undoubtedly the best of the three. Closely linked to the Carracci family and to the city of Bologna, they all had a similar career. They trained in Bologna with Denys Calvaert, and then went to the Accademia degli Incamminati, directed by Ludovico Carraci. In 1600 Reni arrived in Rome, where he worked with Annibale Carracci in the Galleria Farnese. His best period began in these years; in 1609, on Annibale's death, Reni became the head of the classicist school. In the city he was the protégé of Scipione Borghese, the future Pope Paul V, for whom the painter produced one of his most important works, "La Aurora" (Palazzo Rospigliosi). It reveals something that would always be characteristic of Reni's style, his admiration for ancient sculpture. Starting from classical statues, he developed an ideal of beauty and perfection that would be greatly admired by subsequent painters. In 1614 he returned to Bologna for good. Reni's style evolved in a clear direction, becoming more and more sculptural and cold, more and more fully classicist. His mature work was characterised by a cold, silvery palette. Finally, from the 1930s onwards, his style became sketchy, with an unfinished appearance and a tendency towards monochrome, of great interest from a technical as well as a formal point of view. Today Guido Reni is represented in the most important art galleries all over the world, including the Prado Museum, the Hermitage, the Louvre, etc.