Niccolo DELL'ABATE ( 1509-1571 ), Putti games

Sanguine
171 x 156 mm
Niccolo DELL'ABATE (Modena, 1509-Fontainebleau, 1571)

Numbered in pen lower right
Inscribed on verso: "Messere nicolo ou Rafael del Abbate" and "primaticcio" (cut off lower right)

Provenance: Antoine-Joseph Dezallier d'Argenville (1680-1765), Paris (L. 2951).

In the foreground, one putto whips another while straddling it, the latter being held on a leash by a third. Two others, in the left background, seem to be commenting on the scene.

These mischievous putti are reminiscent of those found harvesting grapes in some of the decorative elements of the Palazzo Poggi in Bologna, attributed to the school of Nicolo dell'Abate. The Galleria Estense in Modena also preserves a painting of similarly facetious grape-picking putti. The style and quality of our drawing, as well as the physiognomy of these charming toddlers, point to the hand of Nicolo dell'Abate, whose name appears on the reverse of the mount. Dezallier's number is not easy to decipher, but seems to be in the 800s, which could just be in the Niccolo section: Lelio Orsi is at 898 and Niccolo follows him, the first number listed being 901. The way in which Niccolo dell'Abbate is referred to as "messere Nicolo" also corresponds to the way in which the collector mentions him.

An Italian from Modena, Nicolò Dell'Abate, trained by the sculptor Antonio Begarelli, then a pupil and collaborator of Alberto Fontana (butcher's shops and Palazzo Pubblico in Modena), quickly made a name for himself in Emilia with his decorations in the Modena region (Rocca di Scandiano), then in Bologna (Palazzi Torfanini and Poggi). His early works show an intelligent assimilation of Venetian and Ferrarese examples (Dossi), the influence of Correggio and above all Parmesan, but they are also highly original in landscape and genre scenes (Concerts). Nicolò Dell'Abate arrived in France in 1552 (where he is often referred to as Nicolas Labbé) and became Primaticcio's main collaborator at Fontainebleau (ballroom, 1552-1556, Galerie d'Ulysse, Chapelle de Guise, King's bedroom, Chambre de la duchesse d'Étampes, 1571, among others). He also worked for private clients, sometimes assisted by his sons, notably Giulio Camillo (Hôtel de la rue Saint-Avoye for the Constable de Montmorency, Château de Beauregard and Château de Fleury-en-Bière; Hôtel Le Tellier dit Torpanne, 1567). He also took part in masquerades and festivities (Entrée de Charles IX à Paris, 1571, the last work in which his name is mentioned in the capital).