Noteworthy in both pictures is the vivid flush of all figures. Not only the cheeks glow reddish, but also overall light rosy tones shimmer through the skin. Thus, in contrast to their attributes, the bodies appear alive.

Pompeo Batoni made the two paintings depicting allegories of the arts in 1740 and 1741, during the first heyday of his work. Both works bear witness to Batoni’s refined style, clear composition and characteristic smooth, polished surface, which gives the figures something sublime. His oeuvre, with its precise technique, resonates with Italian academic classicism. Batoni’s contemporaries considered him, together with the painter Adolph Mengs, also active in Rome, as one of the most important artists of that time. Batoni, born in Lucca in 1708, received his first artistic education and instructions in drawing in his goldsmith father’s workshop. This activity required high precision and delicacy, which influenced the elegance of Pompeo’s work and also shaped his painterly style. After further training in the Drawing Academy in Lucca lead by the artists Domenico Lombardi and Domenico Brugieri, in 1727 Batoni travelled to Rome to study painting. His godparents and some noblemen from Lucca supported him financially until he married Caterina Silla and founded a family of his own. Batoni earned his living as a copyist and miniature painter; however, he soon received larger commissions, which firmly established him as an artist in Rome. The church and aristocrats were among his most important clients, for whom he painted religious, historical and mythological scenes.

After a commissioned work for the “Reverenda Fabbrica di San Pietro” was negatively received and removed from the church in 1757, Batoni turned almost exclusively to portrait painting and attained international success in this genre. The soft modulation and classical grandeur of his characters was especially popular with travellers who visited Rome during their Grand Tour and commissioned portraits from Batoni, who often depicted his clients surrounded by distinctive Roman landmarks. Prominent personalities such as Catherine the Great, Grand Duke Paul I of Russia and the Empress Maria Theresa acquired Batoni’s work for their respective collections. Batoni taught drawing to artists in an evening class and held numerous positions, such as the Director of the Accademia Capitolina del Nudo, and could thus influence and shape the artistic debates of the time.

One of Batoni’s characteristics was his delicate brushstroke and paint application that - together with the smooth varnish - left hardly any trace of the painting process. In such a classicist style of painting, the work did not appear as the result of a multilayered working process, but as an idea of pure harmony, in which no trace of the actual making should distract from contemplation. Painting technique and Batoni’s ability to paint figures individually and at the same time of general ideal beauty is also revealed in the two paintings Allegory of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture and Apollo, Music and Geometry in the Cerruti Collection. The motif of the allegories of the arts is a popular and recurring motif in Batoni’s oeuvre, which he has produced in numerous variations.¹

In the two paintings of the Cerruti Collection, Batoni presents the respective figures in flowing fabrics and robes, whose drapery corresponds to the old master style. In the Allegory of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture all three personifications hold their respective attributes. The woman on the left holds a compass in her hand and embodies the art of Architecture. On her left, the allegories of Painting and Sculpture are sitting next to each other. Painting holds a palette with brushes in her left hand that she lovingly places around the shoulders of Sculpture, which in turn holds a mallet in her left hand with her right arm resting on the knee of Painting. On the floor is a bust, which exemplifies her field of art.

Painting and Sculpture look each other in the eye, while standing Architecture directs the gaze towards the viewer in front of the painting. Her direct eye contact with the observer underlines her relevance and draws a connection to the depiction in the background. There, the contours of a temple are faintly discernible. Architecture takes over the central role in this painting, unlike, for example, in the Allegoria delle Arti, which is now in the Städel Museum in Frankfurt, where Poetry with the lyre attracts attention.² There, Architecture is placed in the background; however, she occupies the highest position in the picture and repeatedly faces the observer directly. 

In Apollo, Music and Geometry, Apollo with his attribute of the lyre is the dominant figure of the painting. Music with the flutes and Geometry with a compass and a drawing page look respectfully and with admiration at Apollo, who directs his gaze and arm towards heaven. His gesture and gaze emphasise the connection of the arts with the Divine, which Apollo embodies as the god of the arts. The figures sharply contrast the dark background, which additionally highlights their luminosity and modulation of form.

Noteworthy in both pictures is the vivid flush of all figures. Not only the cheeks glow reddish, but also overall light rosy tones shimmer through the skin. 

Thus, in contrast to their attributes, the bodies appear alive. In such masterful painting technique, Batoni presents the multifaceted spectrum of the art of painting, presenting her like the secret yet undisputed winner over the other arts.

Veronica Peselmann

¹ See Bowron 2016, vol. I, pp. 45-48.

² Oil on canvas, 175.4 x 138 cm, 1740, Frankfurt, Städel Museum.