Nicolo Bambini

Anonymous sale, Venice, Semenzato, 14 July 1988.

R. Polacco and E. Martini, Dipinti Veneti, Collezione Luciano Sorlini, Rome 2000, nos. 38 and 39, reproduced in colour.

The canvases are lined, the paint surfaces are clean and the varnishes are clear and even. Inspection under ultraviolet light reveals scattered and unobtrusive areas of retouching throughout, notably in the flesh tones of the Three Graces and the nymphs in the painting of Diana. The figure of Diana herself is more extensively retouched in concentrated areas through the centre of her body and her raised arm. In overall good condition.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Despite their size, these two canvases appear to be unrecorded and unpublished. They are not, for example, listed in Roberto Radassao's exhaustive catalogue of Bambini's works, published in 1998.¹

A pupil of Sebastiano Mazzoni, Bambini later travelled to Rome where he worked under Carlo Maratta. Like his contemporaries Antonio Balestra and Gregorio Lazzarini, Bambini's place in Venetian painting thus belongs to the phase at the end of the seventeenth century whereby academic influences from central Italy were introduced. These pictures also reflect the influence of his fellow Venetian Pietro Liberi and especially the richer colouring of Sebastiano Ricci. Alessandro Longhi, writing in his Compendio delle Vite de’ Pittori Veneziani (1762) praised Bambini unconditionally, saying that the Venetian nobles competed to own his paintings. The critic Antonio Maria Zanetti also praised him for his 'bellissime fisonomie di donne, varie molto e gentili'.² Polacco and Martini suggest a date for these canvases to around 1710.

¹ R. Radassao, 'Nicolo' Bambini "Pittore pronto spedito ed universal"', in Saggi e Memorie di Storia dell'Arte, no. 22, 1998, pp. 129, 131–287

² A.M. Zanetti, Della pittura veneziana, Venice 1771, p. 424.