Italian school, possibly Giambettino Cignaroli; 18th century.

Italian school, possibly GIAMBETTINO CIGNAROLI (Verona, 1706 -1770); XVIII century.
"St. Anthony of Padua."
Oil on copper.
Measurements: 5.5 x 4.5 cm; 10.5 x 9 cm (frame).
The copper that concerns us represents St. Anthony of Padua, holding in his arms the Child Jesus. The presence of the infant, which alludes to the vision he had in his cell, became the most popular attribute of this Franciscan saint from the 16th century onwards, being especially popular in the Baroque art of the Counter-Reformation. The scene takes place in an ocher-toned interior, where only the sacred writings on a green tablecloth table stand out. The child and the saint are oblivious to the viewer's gaze. The tenderness of Saint Anthony's attitude, the kindness with which the Child's body is conceived and the abandonment of extreme tenebrism, indicate that this is a work typical of the 18th century, a period in which religion opted for gentler themes, abandoning in a certain way the exacerbated pathos of previous eras.
Stylistically the work is reminiscent of models by Giambettino Cignaroli, an Italian painter active in the eighteenth century and a leading figure of the Veronese school. Initially trained with Sante Prunati and then with Antonio Balestra, he shared studies with Pietro Rotari. After opening his own workshop in 1728, he achieved recognition for works of a religious and celebratory nature, influenced by the painting of Tiepolo.
He traveled to Venice, where he studied the great masters of the Renaissance, such as Titian and Veronese. Later, he settled permanently in Verona, from where he developed an intense artistic activity in various Italian cities, such as Milan, Parma, Turin, Bologna and Ferrara, in addition to his pictorial work, Cignaroli promoted the creation of the Academy of Art of Verona. His style is situated between late-Raphaelesque classicism and the first tendencies of neoclassicism.