PSEUDO-GHERARDI (fl. 17th Century)

A CAPRICCIO WITH THE PONTE ROTTO
Bears initial l.l. G
Pen & ink with wash, heightened with white
10.9 x 18 cm
 
PROVENANCE:
Private collection, Paris
 
 
 
We are grateful to Nicolas Schwed for proposing the current attribution. The present work bears all the hallmarks of the draughtsman called 'Pseudo-Gherardi', about whom next to nothing is known beyond a small group of drawings attributed to him. All of these contain the same combination of frenetic penmanship and distinctive heightening in white throughout. The artist is thought to have been active during the 17th century in Italy, and the subject of the present work - which shows the Ponte Rotto of Rome within an imagined landscape - suggests that he at least visited the city, and possibly worked there also.