MARIANO NANI (1726 / 1806) "Still life with turkey, sausage, futa and wine", 1762

"Still Life with Meat and Vegetables" One of them signed and dated in the upper centre, on a piece of paper. He learned his trade as a painter in the workshop of his father, Giacomo Nani, who specialised in painting flowers and landscapes. Mariano came to Spain in 1759 in the service of Charles III to work at the Buen Retiro Factory and from 1775 he also produced tapestry cartoons at the Royal Factory of Santa Barbara. From his early years in Spain he painted still lifes, no doubt in an attempt to improve his social position and recognition, which he lacked as a painter at the porcelain factory. For this reason he presented Charles III with two still lifes of hunting. It seems that he soon made a name for himself on the Madrid market, and several examples of his work are known from the early 1960s, such as this pair of still lifes. His paintings are characterised by their compositional balance, naturalistic conception, Flemish influence and great expressive force, all executed with a soft brushstroke and precious technique. Bibliography: Cherry, P., "Luis Meléndez Still-life Painter", Fundación De Apoyo a La Historia Del Arte Hispánico, Madrid, 2006, pp. 254-56, nos. 225 and 226 (reproduced). . 76,5 x 100 cm and 77 x 100,5 cm. Two oil on canvas