Attributed to Gabriel de la Corte.

Attributed to GABRIEL DE LA CORTE (Madrid, 1648 - 1694).
Spanish school, XVII century.
"Vase".
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 87.5 x 74 cm: 98 x 83.5 cm (frame).
This painting follows a compositional scheme that knew great boom during the Spanish Baroque: The still lifes of flowers. In the way of resolving the varied bouquets of cheerful colors, in which a dense brushstroke of bright pigment has been used, the hand of Gabriel de la Corte is recognizable. The chromatic juiciness of the floral piece advances rococo solutions, which break symmetry and tend to horror vacui. The painter has frozen the moment of maximum maturity of the flower, prior to its decay. The dark background highlights the light of the still life, extracting a wide range of shades. The freedom of execution and vigorous brushstroke are reminiscent of the work of the master from Madrid.
Specializing in the execution of vases, Gabriel de la Corte was the son of another painter from Madrid, Lucas de la Corte, although his paternity has been the subject of debate among important scholars such as Antonio Palomino and Cean Bermúdez. During his lifetime, De la Corte's success was scarce, which led him to eke out a meager living by painting at low prices and even completing the works of other artists by inserting flowers in his works. He was known for the use of an overloaded composition in which the freedom of the workmanship and the spontaneous and vigorous touch of the brush loaded with matter prevail. De la Corte's style is influenced by those of Arellano and anticipates the flower still lifes that, later on, would be crowded with complicated compositions on tremendously elaborated cartouches. Some important works by De la Corte are preserved in the Prado Museum, among other important institutions.