SEBASTIANO CECCARINI (?) (Fano, 1703 - 1783) Portrait of Cardinal Giovanni Battista Spinola Oil on canvas, 100X74 cm A pupil of Francesco Mancini, the painter was also inspired by looking at Roman artists of the Baroque age, such as Domenichino, Guido Reni and Carlo Maratti. He developed a courtly portrait style, characterised by formal poses. His greatest skill lay in the rendering of clothes and ornaments, but he did not lack psychological introspection. Browsing through the painter's catalogue, one finds a certain amount of qualitative discontinuity, certainly dictated by possible differences in patronage, but nevertheless his style remains quite recognisable, so that the types of poses find a definite continuity. The effigy under examination can be compared with the portraits of the Marquis Gabuccini held in the Fano museum, but equally close are the Portrait of a Woman in the Ricci collection in Parma and the portrait of the Ferretti couple. Reference bibliography: B. Cleri, Sebastiano Ceccarini, Milan 1992, ad vocem