Giovanni Maria DELLEPIANE (1660-1745) known as Il Mulinarett - Lot 56

Giovanni Maria DELLEPIANE (1660-1745) known as Il Mulinaretto & workshop Portrait of a young woman in a blue dress, possibly from the Rivarola family Oval oil on canvas H_74 cm W_60.5 cm Faded, repainted Born in Genoa in 1660, Giovanni Maria Delle Piane - better known today as "il Mulinaretto" - learned the rudiments of painting from Giovan Battista Merano. At the age of 16, he moved to Rome, where he joined the studio of Giovanni Battista Gaulli, known as "il Baciccio". He remained there for eight years before returning, in 1684, to his native city, which was then being bombarded by Louis XIV's fleet. Paintings by French artists such as Nicolas de Largillière, François de Troy, Hyacinthe Rigaud and Pierre Mignard began to circulate on Italian soil. The Genoese nobility wanted to be portrayed in the same way as at Versailles, and found skilled interpreters of the French style in a small group of artists including Mulinaretto, Domenico Parodi and Enrico Vaymer. Mulinaretto, like Vaymer, worked closely with Giovanni Antonio Durante, who "dressed" his models, probably until his death in 1717. The former painted the physiognomy, while the latter took care of the clothing. Mulinaretto seduced the Genoese, Milanese, Parmesan and Neapolitan nobility with his ability to bring out the personalities of his clients on canvas. He was a fashionable artist who ultimately established himself as one of the finest Italian portrait painters of the 18th century. We are grateful to Professor Daniele Sanguineti for confirming the attribution to Mulinaretto after photo examination, and for pointing out that the young woman's garment was not by his hand but by his studio (e-mail of March 8, 2026). Expert: Cabinet Artéon