Charles-Joseph Flipart

With Scarpa Art Company, 1953;
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 31 March 1989, lot 45 (as Circle of Pietro Longhi);
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 11 December 1992, lot 406 (as Circle of Pietro Longhi);
Since purchased by the present owner.

Siena, Scarpa Art Company, Scarpa Antiquari in Venezia dal 1953 "700", Fiera Antiquaria, 2003.

AA. VV. (?), Pintura veneciana de Tiziano a Longhi, exhibition catalog, Museo Olmedo Patino, Mexico City, 2002, reproduced;
Siena, Scarpa Art Company, Scarpa Antiquari in Venezia dal 1953 "700", exhibition catalogue Fiera Antiquaria, 2003.

The copper plate is flat and in good condition, the restoration of the clock, as mentioned in the catalogue note, is apparent on the reverse. The paint surface is stable and well preserved and the figures are in very good condition. There are small restorations visible to the naked eye on the upper edge and upper right corner. Inspection under UV real possible scattered old retouchings in the upper background and more recent ones in the clock. The painting is offered in a carved gilt wood frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present painting, previously given to an anonymous hand in the circle of Pietro Longhi, is a delightful example of Charles-Joseph Flipart's refined interior scenes.  The son of an engraver, Charles-Joseph Flipart met Jacopo Amigoni while working in Paris, and, with his encouragement, moved to Venice in the 1740s where he engraved in the studio of the print seller Joseph Wagner.  Flipart made engravings of many of Pietro Longhi's paintings for Wagner's press, and, though this is not a direct copy of a Longhi composition, we see in the present work the unmistakable influence of Flipart's exposure to the Italian's interior scenes, many of which also depict scenes of Masked Balls.¹ 

The figures await the start of a ball; the costumed gentleman, holding his pocket watch, motions to clock; the seated ladies, masks in hand, are poised for the festivities to commence.  Of particular interest in the present work is the clock on the mantelpiece, at the centre of the composition.  When the painting was sold, as Circle of Longhi, at Christie's London in 1989, it included a modern watch, inserted into the surface of the copper.   By 1992, however, when the painting came for sale in the same rooms, the copper surface had been restored and the clock face returned to its original design, with ornate hands and Roman numerals.²

Despite his twelve years in Italy, however, Flipart's style continued to reflect his French roots; the clarity and luminosity of his colors remaining close to Watteau and his followers.³

1.  T. Pignatti, Pietro Longhi, Paintings and Drawings, Complete Edition, London 1969, pp. 16 and 81, reprod. figs. 24 and 25
2.  (See Christie's sale catalogues as listed in provenance.)
3.  T. Pignatti, op. cit., p. 18.