01/10/2001
by Fiona Long

An unusual canvas by Pietro Rotari (Verona 1707-1762 St Petersburg) is to be auctioned at Christie’s, New York on the 3^rd of October 2001 with a high estimate of $ 100,000-150,000 (€ 108,570-162,860). The title, The meeting of Alexander the Great and Roxana, behind a trompe l’oeil curtain, is a variant of an original composition in the Hermitage in St Petersburg of the same subject. One of the experts in charge of the sale in New York, Kim Warner-Johnson, was unable to speculate on what it might fetch at this early stage, but as it is fresh to the market and of royal provenance (the Royal Painting Gallery, Dresden), it represents an intriguing part of the artist’s oeuvre. He did say however that the estimate is "reasonable" for such a "rare" example of Rotari’s work. Only three other pieces are known by Rotari using this trompe l’oeil curtain motif in a similar fashion and so prospects are good.

With the exception of a few biographical notes and a handful of foreign exhibits, Rotari’s output has not been extensively published. Various influential artists came to bear upon his work: Antonio Balestra in his hometown of Verona, Francesco Trevisiani in Venice and later Francesco Solimena in Naples. He continued to travel extensively in Italy and then Europe, which undoubtedly had various influences on his technique. His early works consisted of multi-figured altarpieces and religious subjects, and most importantly portraits. His religious works, however, raise little interest at auction. The Penitent Magdalen, an oil on canvas measuring 46 x 35.2cm that came up for auction on December the 11^th, 1990 at Phillips, London, sold for $ 9,200 (€ 10,000), while a year later at Christie’s, London, a Madonna and Child sold for $ 5,800 (€ 6,300). Both works sold within estimate.

To give an idea of the sheer size of his output and the prestige Rotari enjoyed during the 18^th century, we only have to look at his commissions from Europe’s royal courts. He was summoned to Dresden by the famous collector and patron of the arts, King Augustus III of Poland who had already an international entourage of artists including Anton Mengs and Bernardo Bellotto. While in Dresden, Rotari was able to maximise his output of portraits, mainly of young and elderly women, as well as the King and members of the court. It is these bust-length portraits for which he was most renowned for in his career and which today feature the most on the international market. In 1992, at Sothebys, New York, A portrait of a girl in a blue dress and cap, (43 x 33cm) fetched $ 46,800, whereas later that year, at Christie’s, London, a similar sized portrait, this time of a Girl, bust-length, wearing a cap, sold for $ 81,900 (€ 88,930), against an estimate of $ 23,300-31,000 (€ 25,300-33,630). After Dresden, Rotari’s artistic activity culminated with his appointment to the court of the Empress of Russia in St Petersburg, where the Palace gallery today still houses some 368 of his portraits.

Some of the best prices for these portraits were realised at a Christie’s auction on the 11^th of December, 1992 in London. That sale also included two other portraits from his Russian period, both of which did exceptionally well, far exceeding their original estimates of $ 20,000–31,000 (€ 21,720-33,630); a Portrait of a Girl wearing pearl drop earrings which sold for $ 64,000 while another portrait of A girl wearing a white lace choker and a flower in her hair, went for $ 59,700 (€ 64,750). These portraits are particularly sensuous with motifs that include veils or fans being held to the mouth, and seem to have held particular allure for both the artist and auction buyers alike. In 1993, A Russian girl in a pink cap and blue dress, and a boy in an ochre jacket (45 x 35 cm), sold at Christie’s, London for $ 55,000 (€ 59,630) against an estimate of $ 24,640-32,560 (€ 29,900-35,550). The portraits that crop up most frequently are those of young women. In 1993 Sotheby’s, New York, sold a Young woman holding a fan, (45 x 34cm) within estimate for $ 51,800 (€ 56,160), whereas the following year Christie’s, New York auctioned A young girl with a flower in her hair, (46 x 36 cm), for $ 29,900 (€ 32,420) against an estimate of $ 15,000-20,000 (€ 16,380-21,830). And then in 1996 Sotheby’s, London, raised $ 14,800 (€ 16,050) from the sale of A girl reading (43 x 34 cm). Estimate $ 5,920-8,880 (€ 6,460-9,700). In all cases hammer prices were above their original estimates. In another auction in 1998, at Sotheby’s, London, A young woman, in a Russian hat, holding a book, oil on canvas (44.2 x 35.2 cm) rocketed to $ 71,500 (€ 77,510), three times its estimate.

Almost formulaically, Rotari repeated motifs: languid poses, sensual expressions, porcelain-like flesh and captivating expressions. The paintings are hauntingly attractive and many date among his late period from 1756 until his death in 1762. Incidentally the highest price to date paid for an oil painting by Rotari was for a pair of portraits of a boy and girl, at Sotheby’s New York in 1996, when they fetched $ 134,000 (€ 145,270), twice the estimate. It remains to be seen if Rotari’s trompe l’oeil work at Christie’s in New York in October 2001 can match this result, with its estimate of over $ 100,000 (€ 108,570).