Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo

Laid down. There are several deep cracks running along the right and left margin and at the bottom where there is also some thinning of the paper. There is rubbing of the surface at the bottom and near the margin. The drawing has suffered but the overall impression is strong. It is sold in a modern wooden frame
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We are grateful to Mary Newcome Schleier and to Jonathan Bober who have both independently suggested the attribution to Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo.  In her recent article in Arte Cristiana,¹ Newcome Schleier clearly describes the style of Ansaldo and his role in Genoese painting.  She writes: 'Exceptionally imaginative, he ably redefined traditional religious subjects and involved himself with themes so special that they are difficult to identify today'.  He likes complex compositions such as the one in the present drawing, also an unidentifiable subject, and deep architectural settings which create a stage for his figures.  As Mary Newcome Schleier notes, Ansaldo was equally skilful in painting canvases or frescoes and it appears that most of the painted works mentioned by his biographer Soprani still survive due to his careful technique in preparing them.

1. Mary Newcome Schleier, 'Paintings and Drawings by Ansaldo', Arte Cristiana, no. 857, 2010, pp. 95-100