Bolognese school; second half of the 17th century.

Bolognese school; second half of the seventeenth century.
"Madonna of the Rosary with St. Dominic of Guzman and St. Catherine of Siena".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Presents faults.
It conserves frame of epoch.
Measurements: 65 x 45 cm; 85 x 70 cm (frame).
Image of scenographic presentation, which shows the Virgin with the Child in her lap, seated on a throne of clouds. The Child, standing, holds a rosary in his hand that extends towards St. Dominic de Guzman. Mary is a monumental figure, well seated and sculptural, typical of the classicist baroque, and occupies a large part of the pictorial surface, directly illuminated by a clear and uniform light, which models avoiding the excesses of tenebrism and creates a soft play of light and half shadows. This light gives the flesh tones of both figures a pearly appearance, in accordance with the classical idealization they show. The colors, especially the red of the Virgin's tunic, which dominates the composition and is framed by the blue tone of the mantle. The figures stand out well silhouetted against a golden background of Gloria, subtly worked with shades of ochre and yellow.
The representation of the Virgin of the Rosary was a theme that gained popularity in Baroque painting, the period in which this oil painting is dated. Legend has it that the Virgin taught Saint Dominic to pray the rosary in 1208, telling him to propagate this devotion and use it as a powerful weapon against the enemies of the faith. Appearing in the chapel where the saint was praying, holding a rosary in his hand, he taught him to recite it, promising that many sinners would be converted and obtain abundant graces. He did indeed preach it, and with great success, bringing many Albigensians back to the Catholic faith. In the scene, located in the lower left corner, a dog carrying a torch in its jaws is also represented. This iconography alludes to the dream of Saint Dominic's mother, before he was born. After dreaming of a dog carrying a torch coming out of her womb, the mother made a pilgrimage to the monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos to find out the meaning of her dream. There it was revealed to her that a child would be born, whom she named Domingo, in honor of the monastery.