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Source Description

Conca represents the different character of the four seasons through one of the most favored artistic motifs of the 18th century, the "putto" (embodying the spirit of a little child). The playful, tender, and fleshy figures convey a light mood. As allegorical personifications here, they act out seasons through typical activities. Seated at the fire of a brazier, Winter wraps himself up against the cold (Walters 37.1791); Spring holds a wreath of flowers (Walters 37.1724); Summer shades his head with a leaf against the heat while cooling his foot in a stream (Walters 37.1744); and Autumn, like a little Bacchus (the ancient god of wine), holds grapes, representing the harvest. The charming series was surely intended to decorate a small room, perhaps a dressing room.For more information on this series, please see Federico Zeri's 1976 catalogue no. 433, pp. 545-546.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
6273
label
Allegory of Autumn
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
6273
contentType
drawing
stage
normalized
title
Allegory of Autumn
description
Conca represents the different character of the four seasons through one of the most favored artistic motifs of the 18th century, the "putto" (embodying the spirit of a little child). The playful, tender, and fleshy figures convey a light mood. As allegorical personifications here, they act out seasons through typical activities. Seated at the fire of a brazier, Winter wraps himself up against the cold (Walters 37.1791); Spring holds a wreath of flowers (Walters 37.1724); Summer shades his head with a leaf against the heat while cooling his foot in a stream (Walters 37.1744); and Autumn, like a little Bacchus (the ancient god of wine), holds grapes, representing the harvest. The charming series was surely intended to decorate a small room, perhaps a dressing room.For more information on this series, please see Federico Zeri's 1976 catalogue no. 433, pp. 545-546.
provenance
Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [date and mode of acquisition unknown] [1881 catalogue: no. 152; 1897 catalogue: no. 293, as Carlo Maratta]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
ca. 1720 (Baroque)
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Painting & Drawing
oil paintings (visual works)
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
47.6
height
24.4
dimensionsRaw
H: 18 3/4 x W: 9 5/8 in. (47.6 x 24.4 cm)
Source extras
med
oil on canvas
creator_ids
5928
collection_ids
BAR
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
062fcae0c0ca7cb9