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Lot Essay
The short-lived Valerio Castello is considered one of the most original Genoese artists of the mid-seventeenth century. His highly individual style was forged through an assimilation of influences from Parma, the Milanese School, and the colony of northern painters contributing to the flourishing artistic life in Genoa at that time. As his biographer noted, Valerio's unique idiom 'came to form a new style which encompassed the taste of his predecessors and yet had a certain grace which might be called Valerian' (R. Soprani and C.G. Ratti, Vite de' pittori, scoltori, ed architetti, I, Genoa, 1768, p. 342).
This dramatic portrayal of Moses striking the rock is a fine expression of the elegant lyricism that defined the work of Valerio's full maturity. The composition, which owes much to his contemporary, Giovanni Battista Castiglione, is crowded with agitated figures and animals at the wings, close to the picture plane, acting as a repoussoir to draw attention to the main focus of the unfolding drama. The rhythmic movement of the procession is described with energetic brushwork and a palette flickering with deep reds, yellows, and blues. Although much inspired by the work of Sir Anthony van Dyck for its tonality, the impact of Valerio's travels to Milan and Parma, probably between 1640 and 1645 also, resonates throughout the canvas. The jar-bearing women are seemingly inspired by Parmigianino's Virgins from the ceiling in Santa Maria della Steccata, Parma, whilst the influence of Giulio Cesare Procaccini is evident in the exaggerated gestures and movement between the figures.
Manzitti dates the present picture to the mid-1650s, slightly later than Valerio's treatment of the same subject in the Louvre (c. 1653-1655; Manzitti, loc. cit.) The dramatic gestures of the twisting figures anticipate his treatment of the tumultuously violent subjects executed in the late 1650s, including the Massacre of the Innocents in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.
This dramatic portrayal of Moses striking the rock is a fine expression of the elegant lyricism that defined the work of Valerio's full maturity. The composition, which owes much to his contemporary, Giovanni Battista Castiglione, is crowded with agitated figures and animals at the wings, close to the picture plane, acting as a repoussoir to draw attention to the main focus of the unfolding drama. The rhythmic movement of the procession is described with energetic brushwork and a palette flickering with deep reds, yellows, and blues. Although much inspired by the work of Sir Anthony van Dyck for its tonality, the impact of Valerio's travels to Milan and Parma, probably between 1640 and 1645 also, resonates throughout the canvas. The jar-bearing women are seemingly inspired by Parmigianino's Virgins from the ceiling in Santa Maria della Steccata, Parma, whilst the influence of Giulio Cesare Procaccini is evident in the exaggerated gestures and movement between the figures.
Manzitti dates the present picture to the mid-1650s, slightly later than Valerio's treatment of the same subject in the Louvre (c. 1653-1655; Manzitti, loc. cit.) The dramatic gestures of the twisting figures anticipate his treatment of the tumultuously violent subjects executed in the late 1650s, including the Massacre of the Innocents in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.