Antonio Calza, 1653 Verona - 1725 ibid.

Antonio Calza,
1653 Verona - 1725 ibid., drawing / circle of the

BATTLE SCENE IN FRONT OF THE GATES OF A FORTRESS
Oil on canvas. Doubled.
50 x 91 cm.

In the center an old fortress, surrounded by a moat, with a lowered drawbridge. A stone bridge leads to the entrance, on which the battle is already raging fiercely; several horsemen and some of their horses are falling down, while further fighters and their animals are in the water below. In the lower right corner of the picture, on the bank of the river, several soldiers on horseback are fighting with each other, some with swords, but also with pistols. Particularly striking in this group is a white horse with a red cloth and saddle on its shoulders, and on the left a white horse lying on its back next to a soldier who has fallen to the ground. Numerous billowing clouds of smoke bear witness to the fierce battle with many wounded and downed fighters. In the narrow background on the left a blue mountain range under a high sky in the light of the setting sun. Remainder. The painter was initially a pupil of Carlo Cignani (1628-1719) from Bologna, but then went to Rome to study under the famous battle painter Jacques Courtois (1621-1676), although he mainly worked in Bologna. His pupils included Guglielmo Capodoro (born 1670) and Giovanni Battista Canziani (1664-1730). An interesting detail of his life is that he married an 88-year-old widow in 1675, but subsequently married three more times. He received commissions from General Martini in Milan as well as from Prince Eugene in Vienna for battle scenes and portraits. (14204122) (18))