Ottavio Vannini (Florence 1585-c. 1643/44)

Dr. Filippo Gheri places this exquisite pair of canvases within Ottavio Vannini’s late output, post-1632, when his work became defined by a more liberal use of pigment and an even greater fluency of handling. The figures of both saints display a strong resemblance to those in Vannini’s magnificent altarpiece of the mid-1630s in San Domenico, Pistoia, as well as in his Last Supper in Colle Valdelsa, completed in 1636. Furthermore, the physiognomy and countenance of Saint John is almost identical to the artist’s Saint Sebastian in the convent of San Marco, Florence, for whom the same model must surely have been employed.
Both canvases were conceived in oval format. They would once have been part of a set of the four evangelists, of which Saint Matthew and Saint Mark have yet to be located.
The attribution was recently endorsed by Dr. Francesca Baldassari, to whom we are grateful, on the basis of photographs. Dr Balassari stated that the paintings are 'very beautiful examples' of his work.