French, Italian, and Spanish Paintings

On View: West Building, Main Floor

86 artworks on view.

Self-Portrait before a Painting of "Amor Fedele"

Guercino

1655

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2005.13.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M33

A nearly nude man and woman look up at a bearded man floating in front of a billowing red drapery in midair, accompanied by five chubby children in this horizontal painting. All the people have pale or peachy skin. The man and woman on the ground, Adam and Eve, take up the left half of the composition and are shown near a grove of trees. Adam, to our right in the pair, stands with knees bent, his body facing us. He holds both open hands, palm up, toward Eve, to our left. His head tips to our right and he looks up at the bearded man, God, with dark eyes under raised brows. Adam has a brown beard and curly hair. He wears a ring of leaves across his hips but is otherwise nude. His cheek and nose, hands, knees, and toes are pink, and muscles stand out on his torso, arms, and legs. To our left, Eve kneels on one knee and braces her other leg on her splayed toes. Her body is angled to our left, and she turns back to look up at Adam. She has long blond hair, and her skin is more pale than the others. She also wears leaves around her hips, and her torso and legs are bare. Her left hand, closer to Adam, rests on her thigh. With her other hand, she points to a striped snake on the ground. The trees behind them have dark green leaves and yellow fruit. The dirt ground beneath them has some scrubby green growth. Close to Adam, God and his attendants float above a lion and a lamb on the ground, all taking up the right half of the composition. God’s gray beard and hair blow back as if in a wind. He wears a topaz-blue, knee-length toga. His body faces us, and he leans to our left, almost horizontally, toes pointed off to our right. He reaches his right arm, to our left, toward Adam. His other arm stretches out and rests on a black orb, about the size of a basketball. He is supported to our left by two child-like angels, wearing brick red or golden yellow robes. Three smaller children, like toddlers, gather around the black orb. The red cloth billowing around God and the angels creates a shell-like form that surrounds them. The white lamb lies below and looks at Adam and Eve, and the lion crouches and looks off to our left. Trees and grassy knolls lead back to distant, blue hills. A horse and bear stand, tiny in scale, in the distant landscape. The horizon comes about halfway up the painting, and the vivid blue sky above is clear. In the lower right corner, the inventory number “F.7” is painted in yellow.

The Rebuke of Adam and Eve

Domenichino

1626

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2000.3.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M33

The Last Communion of Saint Mary of Egypt

Sebastiano Ricci

c. 1695

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2003.85.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M30

Nine men and women and three pudgy, toddler-aged children gather in small groups under a copse of trees against a deep landscape in this horizontal painting. Most of the people have pale, nearly white skin and a few have darker, peach-toned skin. They all have rosy cheeks, and most have strawberry or honey blond hair. The men and women wear loose robes in shades of topaz and ice blue, vibrant peach, pale pink, or harvest yellow, and the children appear to be nude. Light pours across the scene from the left. Two women sit in the lower left corner of the composition, mostly in shadow presumably created by trees outside our view. One leans toward us holding a tray of fruit with her dress nearly exposing her round breasts. A woman sitting closer to us holds up a fig as a child reaches for the fruit. Closer to us, a muscular man sits on the ground next to an urn the size of a backpack. One child next to the urn sits almost with their back as he holds up a cup, and a gold-colored horn hangs from a ribbon across the torso. Another child other leans forward closer to the man, a bunch of grapes held in both hands. A pile of grape vines with grapes and orange-colored fruit sits between the man and first child. Behind this trio, one woman picks fruit from a leafy tree, which has a grape vine growing around its thick trunk. Another woman sits in the shade of the tree and looks on, a piece of fruit in her hand. The final four people are gathered to the right, where one man supports another who leans limply away from us, one arm slung over his supporter’s shoulders. The partially prone man is bare-chested and wears a crown of grapevine leaves. More leaves are around his waist under a vivid, coral-red cloth, and his feet rest on a pile of figs, fruit, and grapes. A third man in this trio is the only one with a beard. He wears a cheetah animal skin and presses grapes in both hands to fill the cup held by the prone man. A woman stands between the pair, holding more grapes and looking off into the distance. Trees and bushes grow across the left half of the composition, and a distant landscape on the right half opens onto rolling hills and hazy mountains. The sky glows peach along the horizon and deepens to twilight blue across the top half of the painting.

Autumn

Corrado Giaquinto

c. 1740/1750

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2001.123.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M32

Eight men and women, two children, and a baby sit or toil in a barren landscape under a thick blanket of clouds in this horizontal painting. The people all have pale, peachy skin, and they wear tunics and robes in shades of golden yellow, salmon or rose pink, crimson red, lapis blue, and honeydew or laurel green. A man to our left of center raises an ax high over one shoulder as he braces a sandaled foot on a fallen tree trunk. Another person squats and holds another thick log nearby, in the lower left corner of the painting. A third person reaches up to brace a bundle of logs, which are bound with a rope, across his back. A bit behind this group, at the center of the composition, two women, a man, and a baby huddle on the ground around a fire. Logs are tied to create a frame from which a big-bellied pot hangs. Closer to us and to our right, a bearded man, woman, and two children sit in the shelter of a rocky overhang. The man sips wine from a glass as he holds the bottle with his other hand. The woman holds a bowl, and the children sit in front of a pot with glowing embers. One child puts food in their mouth, and the other holds a hand up over the heat. A loaf of bread and a jug sit on a white cloth on a bench nearby. Two cows or steers stand near the arched opening of a bridge to our left, and dark blue clouds press down on snow-covered huts in the distance.

Winter

Corrado Giaquinto

c. 1740/1750

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2002.155.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M32

A dish of about two dozen figs, a crusty loaf of bread, a tall, black flask, and two wooden vessels are closely gathered on a wooden table or ledge in this vertical still life painting. At the front right, the figs are either deep purple or pale green. The shallow, pale lavender-gray dish in which they are piled has a narrow, scalloped edge. The round loaf of golden-brown bread, with its split top, sits behind and to our left of the figs. In the lower left corner, next to the figs and closest to us, the handle of a knife projects toward us. Its pewter-colored blade angles back away from us. Beyond the bread is a wide-bellied, black, long-necked bottle with a cork. White reflections of windows out of our view to our left glint on the shiny, inky surface. Next to it, to our right, a small wooden barrel is about the size of an American football. At the back right, the cylindrical neck of a copper vessel pokes out of a pile of pale ice shavings, all within a keg-like bucket. The still life is set against a dark brown background.

Still Life with Figs and Bread

Luis Meléndez

c. 1770

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2000.6.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M34

The sculpture is a bust of a bearded man with curly hair, draped in a garment knotted at the front. It is made of terracotta, with a warm, reddish-brown color. The figure is detailed and lifelike, including features like the man's curls and facial hair. The eyes of the sculpture lack detailed pupils, giving it a classical and somewhat stylized appearance. The bust is presented on a simple rectangular base.

Saint Matthew

Alessandro Algardi

c. 1640

Terracotta Accession ID 1970.7.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M36

The image shows a portrait of a man visible from the waist up, seated in a red cushioned chair, his body turned to the left and his face turned to us. His facial features include pale skin, dark eyebrows, slightly sagging cheeks, and pink lips in a neutral expression. His hair seems to be shaved, and his head is mostly covered by a white, striped head covering that resembles a beret. He wears a reddish-brown coat with white ruffled sleeves, and underneath a white collared garment and a light pink ribbon peek out. In his hands, the man holds drawing instruments, including a pencil or pen and a stack of papers. Behind him on the left are several small tan and white sculptures, including a nude male figure, a cherub, and a woman's head. Beside these sculptures are several paint brushes and a flat surface that could be a painter's palette. The walls behind him are gray.

Self-Portrait

Nicolas de Largillierre

1707

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2006.26.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M37

This carved ivory statue shows a mostly nude man standing on a square base with his hands bound to one side as he looks over the other shoulder. In this photograph, his wrists are tied together to our right, and he looks off to our left with his face tucked close to that shoulder. He has a curly beard and long wavy hair, which is pushed back over his shoulders. His lips are parted and his brows gathered. Both feet are planted on the base but most of his weight rests on his straight right leg, on our left, and the other knee is bent. This makes his right hip, on our left, jut out as his torso angles to our right. A loincloth drapes around his hips and ties at his right hip, on our left. His torso, arms, and legs are muscled, and veins stand out on his hands and arms. Some cracks are visible along the surface.

Christ Bound

François Duquesnoy

1620s

Ivory Accession ID 2007.67.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M29

Shown from the waist up, a man with pale, peachy skin and wearing a monk’s robe rests his elbows on a rock with his hands together in prayer in this vertical painting. He is lit from our left, and the background and edges of the composition are mostly in deep shadow. The man’s body and head lean to our left, and he looks at us with dark eyes under gathered brows. He has a long, straight nose, high cheekbones, and his pink lips are parted. He has a dark moustache, and his hair is cut into a ring around his close-cropped crown. He wears a brown hooded robe, and a string of rosary beads hangs from his joined hands. A slender crucifix leaning against a stone in front of him is obscured at the top by what might be a swath of white fabric. The top part of a skull, its surface a golden brown, sits on our side of the rocks. A few plants are tucked in around the skull and boulders. The background is nearly black except for a diffuse pale green halo framing the young man’s head.

Saint Francis in Prayer

Bernardo Strozzi

c. 1620/1630

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2002.78.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M29

This is a painting of a group engaged in a music session, all looking towards a large open music book in a grand, architectural setting. Behind the group are tall, ornate columns and an arched background that opens up to show a cloudy blue sky. Most of the people have open mouths as if they are singing, while one man in the back seems to be conducting, holding a up roll of paper. Some of the people in the group are seated in cushioned wooden chairs, and a yellowish cloth is draped over the surface that the large book rests on. There is a string instrument similar to a cello near the bottom left corner. The colors used are rich, earthy browns, yellows, and reds, with elements of blue and white clothing. All of the people have pale skin, and two have long white mustaches.

The Choristers

Alessandro Magnasco

c. 1740/1745

Oil on canvas Accession ID 1972.17.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M30

This painting is a portrait of a seated woman, her body turned slightly to the right and her head looking towards us. She has a fair complexion, with round, rosy cheeks, pale eyebrows, large green eyes, and thin pink lips in a neutral expression. Her light blonde hair is styled in short curls close to her head and adorned with pearls and a clip or barrette in the shape of small leaves. She is dressed in a cream-colored dress with intricate embroidery in shades of brown, gold, and black. On top of the dress is a long black garment that flows over her shoulders and upper arms and has a high collar, decorative buttons, and more embroidery. Her gown is paired with a ruffled white collar and lace at her neckline and wrists. Long gold chains drape across her chest, and she wears a pearl necklace around her neck and two small golden rings on her fingers. In her left hand, our right, she holds a small book, while a lace handkerchief is in her right hand, our left. She wears pearl earrings, strands of pearl bracelets, and a decorative brooch in the shape of a white dog with a pink bow. The seat she sits on is wooden with dark red cushions decorated with golden tassels and embroidery, behind her on the left is a draped green cloth, and on the right, a table is covered with music sheets, a stringed instrument, books, and small blue and yellow ribbons. The wall behind the table is brown, and there is some gold lettering in the top right corner.

Lucia Bonasoni Garzoni

Lavinia Fontana

c. 1590

Oil on canvas Accession ID 2022.38.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M33