Gaetano Recco (Naples, active in the second half of the 17th century)

Descriptio Oil on canvas. Dimensions: 75 × 63 cm. We thank Stefano Causa for his assistance in cataloging this work. A magnificent devotional representation of Saint Peter in Penitence, attributed by Professor Stefano Causa to Gaetano Recco, one of the most interesting and little-known masters of the late Neapolitan Baroque. The work, datable to around 1680, exemplifies the intimate religious painting that flourished in Naples during the last decades of the 17th century. The saint is depicted in bust form, his gaze raised to heaven and his hands clasped in penitence, in a composition of intense psychological drama achieved through a powerful chiaroscuro reminiscent of Caravaggio. According to Stefano Causa’s study, the painting demonstrates a clear training within the Neapolitan milieu influenced by Jusepe de Ribera, evident in the anatomical vigor, the modeling of the hands, and the expressive treatment of the face, although reinterpreted with a later style that incorporates echoes of Luca Giordano’s mature work. The specialist expressly rejects an attribution to the Venetian school and places the work within the known production of Gaetano Recco, closely relating it to the signed Saint Joseph preserved in the Quadreria del Pio Monte della Misericordia in Naples and to other versions of the Tears of Saint Peter found in private collections and previously attributed to Andrea Vaccaro. Gaetano Recco belonged to the celebrated dynasty of Neapolitan painters headed by Giuseppe Recco (1635–1695), although, unlike his father and the rest of the family, he focused his production primarily on religious painting. Extant documentation places him active in Naples at the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th centuries, as well as in Madrid around 1700, where he executed an Immaculate Conception for the Convent of the Discalced Trinitarians. Among his documented works are the Death of Seneca in the Capodimonte Museum, the Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew in the Church of Santa Maria del Sepolcro in Ripacandida, and various half-length portraits of saints and biblical figures. The work is accompanied by an art-historical study and attribution by Professor Stefano Causa, dated July 10, 2025, which confirms its attribution to Gaetano Recco and its approximate date of around 1680. It is presented in good condition. Lot in international warehouse (within the EU). Intra-EU shipping: no import duties apply within the EU. An export permit from the country of origin may be required.

Estimate:$8,981.19

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