Italian classicist school of the end of the 17th century

Italian classicist school of the late 17th century.
"Apollo and Daphne".
Oil on canvas.
Restored with patches.
French frame of the nineteenth century.
Measurements: 50 x 66,5 cm; 64,5 x 84 cm (frame).

This painting represents a mythological scene of the story of Apollo and Daphne, showing the moment of maximum tension in which Apollo, on the right, chases Daphne, located in the center, who flees with a desperate gesture while she begins to transform into laurel, visible in the branches she holds in her hands. On the left appears a larger male figure, probably a fluvial god like Peneus, who pours water and symbolizes the divine intervention in the metamorphosis of Daphne to save her, all treated in a baroque style with great dynamism, marked diagonals, fabrics agitated by the wind and an intense contrast of colors that reinforces the drama of the scene.

This canvas is contextualized in the Italian classicist school because the work clearly reflects the principles of that style: a balanced and orderly composition, based on models of classical antiquity, with idealized and harmonious figures; in addition, although there is movement, it is controlled and not as extreme as in the more dramatic Baroque, revealing a search for narrative clarity and ideal beauty; we also perceive the use of rich but restrained colors and lighting that models the figures with softness, characteristics typical of Italian painters who, influenced by the Renaissance and artists like the Carracci, sought to recover classical perfection combined with a certain Baroque dynamism.