VERONESE PAINTER 16TH CENTURY Holy Family with Saint Lucy and Saint Agnes Oil on canvas, 94.5X104 cm Provenance: Milan, private collection The painting bore a collector's attribution to Paolo Veronese and was brought back to the sphere of Palma il Giovane by Giorgio Fossaluzza, thanks to a comparison with the two altarpieces from the Church of the Teatini now in the City Museum of Rimini and depicting the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Assumption (inv. no. 60 PQ). Having said this, the scholar emphasises the same executive hand that characterises these works, highlighting a personality close to Palma, but with different and autonomous stylistic features. Indeed, the paintings in Rimini were initially attributed by Marcheselli to Andrea Schiavone (cf. Marcheselli, 1754, p. 38), and thus reconfirmed by Luigi Lanzi (cf. Lanzi 1809, VI, p. 129). Later, Giuseppe Fiocco leaned towards Brusasorci (Verona, 1516 ; 1567), supporting the idea of a Veronese genesis, while in 1983, Pasini cautiously attributed them to Palma il Giovane (Venice, 1549 ; 1628). With regard to this reference, the style of the work examined here suggests an early execution, placing itself in the compositional wake of the Sacred Conversations that Venetian artists would develop during the 16th century. The composition sees the Virgin and Child in the centre and on the sides, we recognise St. Lucy encouraged by Mary to approach the baby Jesus on the left and St. Agnes on the right, with St. Joseph in the background. The diffuse luminosity, the liveliness of the Child and the animation of the characters declare the Titianesque matrix, but equally manifest is the influence of Caliari for the chromatic vivacity of the drafts and the highlights. As far as chronology is concerned, we can also observe a scenic conformation in which a central Italian suggestion transpires, suggesting an eighth decade execution. In this regard, we can observe that the face of the Virgin finds comparison with that of Palma's Sacra Conversazione dated 1580-1582 conserved in the Church of the Redeemer (Mason Rinaldi, 1994, p. 201, cat. 475), but even more striking analogies are to be found with the Madonna and Child with Saints John the Baptist, Joseph, Helena and Catherine of Alexandria belonging to the Tadini Academy in Lovere, which, also dated around 1580, presents an echo of the Mannerist culture of the Capitoline period, but conceived through a dynamic of familiar illustrative references (cf. N. Ivanoff, P. Zampetti, Giacomo Negretti detto Palma il Giovane, in I pittori bergamaschi dal XIII al XIX secolo. The 16th century. III, Bergamo 1979, p. 541, fig. 673). The latter aspect can be appreciated very well in the canvas examined here in which the desire to propose a confidential devotion to the sacred is evident, evoking an affectionate and intimate atmosphere as befitting a private destination. We thank Giorgio Fossaluzza for the critical information. Reference bibliography: C. F. Marcheselli, Pitture delle chiese di Rimino descritte dal signor Carlo Francesco Marcheselli, Rimini 1754, p. 38 L. Lanzi, Storia pittorica della Italia dal Risorgimento delle belle arti fin presso al fine del XVIII secolo Milano 1809, VI, p. 129 S. Mason Rinaldi, Palma il Giovane. The Complete Works, Milan 1984, ad vocem S. Mason Rinaldi, Palma il Giovane 1548-1628. Drawings and Paintings, exhibition catalogue, Milan 1990, ad vocem