1107 - DI NICOLO' LUTERI, GIOVANNI

DI NICOLO' LUTERI, GIOVANNI (DOSSO DOSSI) c. 1486 Tramuschio–1541/1542 Ferrara Title: Madonna and Child. Date: c. 1516. Technique: Oil on panel. Dimensions: 59 x 48.5 cm. Reverse: An old, torn, and illegible label on the panel. Frame: Framed. Certificate: Mauro Lucco, Bazzano, June 20, 2019; a copy is available. Set against the evocative chiaroscuro of a dimly lit room, the Virgin Mary holds the two ends of a white veil, poised to drape it over the small, sleeping, unclothed Jesus. The infant lies humbly on a bed of straw directly on the ground; blades of grass partially cover the white cloth. The ox and the donkey, the wooden slats of the manger, and the crumbling wall indicate that the composition was originally conceived as a Nativity scene. The figure of Saint Joseph—now missing—can be inferred from the painting’s original layout; the panel was trimmed on the left side. The Virgin’s gesture serves not only an important narrative function but also establishes a direct link to Raphael’s famous “Madonna of Loreto” (also known as the “Madonna del Velo”), created around 1511 and now housed in the Musée Condé in Chantilly. Both the lifting of the veil and the child’s nudity carry a dual significance: on the one hand, they underscore the reality of Christ’s Incarnation; on the other, the veil symbolically alludes to the shroud in which Christ would be wrapped at the end of his earthly life. The attribution to Dosso Dossi, proposed by Mauro Lucco, is supported by compelling stylistic and iconographic evidence. The painting belongs to the particularly serene and imaginative phase of his classicizing work, in which Raphaelesque and Giorgionesque influences blend with a keen sensitivity to the effects of light, atmosphere, and naturalistic detail. Dossi’s connection to Venetian painting—specifically to the work of Giorgione and Titian—is further evidenced by his stays in Venice while in the service of Alfonso I d’Este. A comparison with works from the mid-1510s is particularly revealing; these include the “Melissa” in the Galleria Borghese in Rome and the “Nativity”—also housed there—as well as the “Rest on the Flight into Egypt” in the Uffizi. Also characteristic of this phase of his career is Dosso’s treatment of the halo as a narrow gold rim around the head, a feature visible, for instance, in the famous “Saint George” at the J. Paul Getty Museum. Another significant point of comparison arises from the work of Garofalo, with whom Dosso collaborated beginning in 1513 on the important polyptych commissioned by Antonio Costabili. Now housed in the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Ferrara, the altarpiece bears witness to their shared engagement with a classicizing visual language shaped by Raphael and Venetian painting. The close connection between the two artists serves as a key reference point for the cultural milieu in which Dosso’s early artistic maturity unfolded. Consequently, following a proposal by Mauro Lucco, the composition can be dated to around 1516—a particularly significant phase in the artistic development of the young Dosso Dossi. Here, his distinctive style blends classical formal language, naturalistic observation, and a remarkable freedom of imagination. The sophisticated use of light, the subtle palette, and the combination of everyday elements with learned iconographic allusions make the panel a particularly compelling example of Dosso Dossi’s early oeuvre. Provenance: - Private collection, Germany; Dorotheum Auction, Vienna, December 11, 2018, Lot 47 (attributed to the Venetian School, 16th century). Estimated shipping costs for this lot: This lot is not suitable for parcel shipping. Transportation is available only through a shipping company, subject to consultation following the auction. Additional shipping insurance Shipping insurance up to a total invoice amount of 25,000 euros: max. 41.65 euros over a total invoice amount of 25,000 euros: 1.8 per thousand Shipping to the USA by individual arrangement after the auction. #Dosso Dossi #Giovanni di Nicolo' Luteri #Italy #16th C. #Madonna #Christmas scene #Old Masters.