378 - 17th-century ITALIAN SCHOOL, circle of Giacomo Torelli (1604 or 1608–

17th-century ITALIAN SCHOOL, circle of Giacomo Torelli (1604 or 1608– 1678) or the Galli da Bibiena The Grand Sipario Oil on canvas. H_375 cm W_190.5 Restored, re-stretched. Sold by description Related work: Ferdinando Galli Bibiana, Architectural Caprice, oil on canvas, a pair, Hampel Fine Art Munich auction, June 22, 2007 (Sold for €88,000). This monumental painting is likely one of the few remaining examples of a Baroque theatrical set. Of impressive dimensions, our painting depicts a landscape backdrop behind a large red sipario rendered in trompe-l’oeil. Executed with great skill, this painting was likely part of a complete set design reminiscent of the works of Giacomo Torelli and the Galli da Bibiena family. A painter, engineer, and set designer, Giacomo Torelli invented machines and created unprecedented sets that earned him the nickname “the great sorcerer” (stregone gran) even at the French court. Born into a family of the Italian minor nobility, nothing is known about his training. His career is reminiscent of that of Leonardo da Vinci, who also divided his time between painting and engineering. Torelli even worked for a time as a military engineer at the Venice Arsenal. In 1641, he founded the Teatro Novissimo, where performances featured spectacular set changes that evoked surprise and wonder. In 1644, Mazarin invited him to France to introduce a taste for opera there. He produced *La Finta pizza* before the young Louis XIV, then seven years old, Queen Anne of Austria, and the cardinal. The machinery he installed at the Théâtre du Petit-Bourbon was described in the *Encyclopédie* by Diderot and D’Alembert. He died in 1678 in his hometown of Fano. The Galli da Bibiena, for their part, were a long line of painters, draftsmen, architects, and theater set designers active in Bologna during the 17th and 18th centuries. Among the most famous of them were Giovanni Maria Galli da Bibiena (1618/25–1665), a pupil of Albani; his son Ferdinando (1657–1743), who continued his apprenticeship under Carlo Cignani; and his grandson Alessandro (1686–1748), who became painter to the Elector Palatine Charles Philip. Although it is difficult to determine the artist with certainty, our painting is a rare and exceptional work that reflects the Italian taste for theatrical staging. The color palette suggests that the artist drew inspiration from the Bolognese school. The rendering of the landscape and the figure in the foreground is remarkably refined, as is the use of perspective, skillfully introduced by the checkered floor.