Attributed to Gaspard Dughet

Attributed to GASPARD DUGHET (Rome, 1615-1675); second half of the 17th century.
"Landscape with the funerals of Phocion".
Oil on canvas.
It has a frame of the seventeenth century.
Measurements: 60.5 x 83 cm; 75 x 98 cm (frame).
This work is modeled after the painting entitled "The Funeral of Phocion", a landscape created in 1648 by the French painter Nicolas Poussin, which is in the collection of the Earl of Plymouth in Oakly Park and is on long-term loan to the National Museum of Cardiff. There are several models of the same work; one is in the Louvre Museum in Paris, from the Rosewall collection in Guernsey, acquired in 1922. It was once thought to be the original, but art historians agree that it is a copy of the Cardiff painting. The other version is in the Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut, in the United States. Walter Friedlaender speculated that it might be the original, but art historians agree that it is simply an old copy.
Phocion was a 4th century B.C. Athenian statesman unjustly condemned to poison himself. Because of the punishment he received, it was forbidden to bury him in the city. Therefore his body was taken out of Athens and burned at the stake, the painting is preserved.

The stylistic characteristics of the work bring us closer to the painting of Gaspard Dughet, also known as Pussino and as Gaspard Poussin, was brother-in-law of Nicolas Poussin, and worked in the workshop of the latter until 1635. Nicolas Poussin's life became better known after his arrival in Rome in 1624 and, above all, after his marriage in 1630. When he arrived in Rome, he managed to contact important patrons, thus winning important commissions (he participated in the renovation of St. Peter's in the Vatican, painted for Casiano del Pozo, etc.). His fame grows from 1634, when he begins to receive commissions from France, and finally he arrives in Paris to work for Louis XIII in 1640, returning to Rome after a disastrous stay. Stylistically, he stands out for his strong compositions, perfectly balanced, and turns, over time and increasingly, towards nature, creating important landscapes. His work is preserved only in important private collections, and also in prominent institutions such as the Prado Museum in Madrid, the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, the Museum of Fine Arts in Rouen, the Louvre Museum in Paris, the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff, etc. Gaspard Dughet is considered one of the main masters in the creation of the poetics of the Roman landscape in the 17th century, as well as being one of the most valued artists of his time and, in addition to working on canvas, he frescoed numerous decorations in Roman palaces. Specializing in landscapes, he especially liked to show the environment of Rome. Experts agree that the relative abundance of preserved works, together with the lack of dates, make a chronology and a detailed study of his production difficult. Stylistically, he started from a landscape in which classical serenity stood out (influenced by Poussin), to gradually adapt the influence of Nordic painters to bring more drama to his work, adding storms or rugged landscapes. The small human figures in his paintings were sometimes made by other artists. It should be noted that he was appointed Academician of San Lucas in Rome in 1659, and that the Spanish ambassador Castel Rodrigo bought much of his work, which could be for himself or for King Philip IV. His work is preserved in various private collections around the world and in institutions such as the Prado Museum in Madrid, the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, the Dulwich Picture Gallery in London, the Wallace Collection in London, the Art Gallery of South Australia, the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest, etc.