Paolo de Matteis Piano del Cilento, Salerno 1662 - 1728 Naples

This beautifully finished picture on panel, brightly and colorfully painted, is an excellent example of the type of panel picture which made Paolo de Matteis popular among collectors throughout Europe.  Another version of the composition, much larger but without the landscape background, is recorded by Nicola Spinosa (see Sebastiano Conca, Gaeta 1981, p. 75, reproduced fig.2).

The story of Rinaldo and Armida is told in Torquato Tasso's Gerusalemme Liberata, which is a late 16th century, romanced account of the First Crusade. In this story, Armida, a beautiful virgin witch, is sent to defeat the Crusaders, whom she transforms into monsters, an element strongly reminiscent of Homer's witch Circe.  However, Rinaldo successfully frees his companions, and shortly thereafter, the hatred Rinaldo and Armida feel for each other turns into love.  This picture depicts the happiest time the lovers live, when lingering in Armida's enchanted kingdom, where they share some blissful moments, gazing into each other's eyes, unaware that they are being watched by two soldiers hidden behind the trees.  The figures are painted with a combination of baroque lyricism and rococo sweetness characteristic of the Neapolitan artist.  Having trained in Naples, Paolo de Matteis moved to Rome where he joined the most important artistic circles dominated by the painter Carlo Maratta. He moved back to Naples with his Spanish-born patron, Marqués del Carpio, Gaspar de Haro y Guzmàn, in 1653.  When he returned from Rome, the artist had assimilated the latest artistic developments of this transitional phase, making him a key figure of the development of Neapolitan painting style.