Bolognese school of the 18th century.

Bolognese school of the 18th century.
"Cupid".
Oil on canvas.
Provenance: Valli collection, Torino.
Measurements: 51 x 63,5 cm; 65 x 78 cm (frame).

The painting represents Cupid, the god of love, a winged child who appears suspended in the air while he draws his bow to shoot an arrow. His infantile body, with rounded and soft forms, is modeled with a delicate treatment of light and color, which accentuates the fleshiness and smoothness of the skin.

The background, dominated by a red curtain of intense folds, gives depth and drama to the composition, contrasting with the luminous tone of the little god's body. The enveloping chiaroscuro and the softness of the modeling reveal the influence of Bolognese classicism, heir to the Carracci and Guido Reni, characterized by compositional harmony, the idealization of forms and the balance between naturalism and idealized grace.

The artist achieves a balance between the dynamism of the gesture and the expressive serenity of the child's face, a typical trait of Bolognese painting of the seventeenth century.

The work synthesizes the academic taste of the Bolognese school of the eighteenth century: classicist elegance, balanced composition and refined sense of color, applied to a mythological theme treated with tenderness and technical virtuosity.