Unknown - Three cherubs

The putto, or winged child, is one of the most recurring and widespread iconographic motifs throughout the history of Western art. It derives directly from Greek and Roman antiquity and originated as a representation of Eros/Cupid, the god of love, or, more generally, as a cupid. Precisely because of its connection to classical culture, the figure of the putto was systematically revived in the humanist 15th century. It was Donatello who first used the putto as a decorative motif in his famous Cantorie, inspired by the model of ancient sarcophagi. Subsequently, especially from the 16th century onwards, the figure of the putto became an active part of major religious scenes, undergoing a transposition from classical mythology to the Christian religion and taking on the role of an angel with childlike features. In the 17th century, it was a very popular iconographic motif, especially in the Baroque period, sometimes through the representation of just the head with wings.

The execution of this group of putti exhibits an exquisitely Baroque spirit, both in its composition and in the pictorial technique employed. Compositionally, we can see how, in keeping with a typically seventeenth-century conception inspired by the great naturalism of the Renaissance (and specifically by Correggio for his model of the flying putti), the subjects are exalted with monumental plasticity, even in the depiction of infant figures. However, we can point to the artist's insistence on the softness and plumpness of the flesh as already specifically Baroque, evident in the rounded limbs, the prominent folds, and the lush faces. Still remaining in the realm of compositional analysis, the daring foreshortening that has this group of putti soaring in flight can be described as even more Baroque (and in this case, Correggio's model, which was fundamental to the definition of Baroque ceilings, is even more evident and identifiable in the putti figures that appear in the dome of the Abbess's Chamber at the Monastery of San Paolo in Parma). Thus, the artist depicts these figures with an extremely accentuated 'bottom-up', suggesting a view from below and theatrically enhancing the dynamic effect of the flight. This specifically Baroque dynamism is also expressed in the variety of movements and the complexity of the draperies, based on curved and broken rhythms. As already mentioned, the work also formally reflects a thoroughly Baroque spirit. The artist's technique features a strong pictorial quality that synthesizes the subjects in a powerful, sulphurous atmosphere. The forms almost dissolve under the influence of the golden light, which coherently unifies the scene.

As we have seen from our analysis of this work, the artist stands out as an excellent representative of a fully Baroque pictorial style. His technique is outstanding in the execution of an accentuated foreshortening that presents the figures in a suggestive and dynamic flight. His style possesses a strong atmosphericism that almost dissolves the forms, which is one of the main characteristics of Baroque painting.

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