GIACOMO GUERRINI (Cremona, 1721 - 1793) Sacred representation with the Holy Family, St. Francis, St. Charles and St. Michael Oil on canvas, 263X185.5 cm Provenance: Vittuone, Resta Chapel (according to the collector's notes) Milan, private collection Trained in Francesco Boccaccino's workshop, little is known about the artist. We do know that his first public work was the Beheading of St. John for the Oratory of San Girolamo in Cremona, still reminiscent of the 16th-17th century influences of Luca Cattapane and Campi. In fact, the painter's early works are influenced by a gloomy suggestion and a physiognomy derived from his illustrious predecessors. Later, Guerrini would take his cue from examples in Emilia and Veneto, looking to Francesco Monti and Piazzetta, as can be seen in the painting of Storia di santo francescano (History of a Franciscan Saint) of 1746, destined for the convent of San Pietro. Having said this, his stay in Milan after 1758 was the starting point for a renewal of his art that, during the last years of his life, was to express 'unpredictable neoclassical results' (cf. M. Picciau, Guerrini Giacomo, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 60, 2003). The altarpiece presented here can be dated to this time, whose balanced scenic composition, calm chromatic luminosity and expressive tenor are evident. As far as its ancient location is concerned, we can assume that the collector's indication of its location is the Resta Chapel at the Vittuone cemetery, a building that was sold by the noble family to the parish of Santa Maria in 1928 and dedicated shortly after to the fallen soldiers of the Great War. Reference bibliography: M. Bona Castellotti, La pittura lombarda del Settecento, Milan 1986, ill. nn. 341-346 L. Bandera, Giacomo Guerrini, in Pittura a Cremona dal romanico al Settecento, edited by M. Gregori, Cremona 1990, p. 304-305, tables 154-155 L. Bandera, in La pittura in Italia. Il Settecento, II, Milan 1990, pp. 747 L. Donzelli, Il Settecento, in Barocco nella Bassa. Pittori del Seicento e del Settecento in una terra di confine, exhibition catalogue edited by M. Tanzi, Milan 1999, p. 125, cards 26-30