MAZZONI, SEBASTIANO
THE THREE GRACES
The Three Graces – Aglaia, Euphrosyne and Thalia – embodied elegance and beauty. This picture can with every justification be regarded as a first-class example of the art of this Florentine painter, much of whose work was undertaken in Venice. The monochrome colours and chiaroscuro accentuating the plastic aspects of the forms are reminiscent of techniques used by Francesco Furini, Mazzoni's teacher, and other masters of the Florentine school. At the same time Venetian influence can also be felt in the picture, in particular with regard to the depiction of textiles (striped textiles can often be seen in the canvases of 16th-century Venetian painters – Veronese, Tintoretto, Jacopo Bassano).
Provenance: acquired in 1974 from A.F.Lyakhova, Moscow.
