Bardi, after Carlo Dolci - Madonna and Child
Prof. Bardi, after Carlo Dolci (1616-1686), Italian
Madonna and Child, undated
COPY OIL ON CANVAS, 36 ½ x 29 ½ inches
Gift of Horace Fairbanks
Like many copyists of the nineteenth century, the painter of this composition, Prof, Bardi, is unknown today. The market for painted reproductions of the works of great Renaissance and Baroque masters fostered a veritable cottage industry in Italy during the period, but injured Dolci's art historical reputation more than those of his peers, as the reproductions were sometimes mistaken for his relatively scarce originals. Nevertheless, in the Athenaeum’s composition Bardi captured the essential characteristics of emotional intimacy, piety, and smooth finish for which Dolci's art was celebrated in his own time.