Pietro Antonio Novelli, Italian 1729-1804- Diana the Huntress; pen, black...

Pietro Antonio Novelli,
Italian 1729-1804-

Diana the Huntress;

pen, black ink and grey wash on paper, 12.8 x 9.1 cm., (unframed).

Provenance:
Carlo Praya (1826-1900) (Lugt 2044).
Maria de Bernasconi, 1977 (inscription on the verso).
with Hill-Stone, USA.
Private Collection.

Note:
Novelli, a pupil of Jacopo Amigoni (c.1685-1752), was a prolific draughtsman and printmaker, and had an extremely successful career as a decorative painter in Venice and the surrounding terra firma. The present work constitutes a peak in Novelli's fluid and sensual draftsmanship. The subject is conveyed in strokes of grey washes, modelled in a darker ink with a finer brush. For a larger drawing of the same model in similar format, see Anon. sale, Christie's, Paris, 18 March 2004, lot 50 (€4,113). We are grateful to Dr Annalisa Scarpa for confirming the attribution to Novelli, based on inspection of high resolution photographs.