Ossian tells Malvina the deeds of his son Oscar
FILIPPO BELLATI
FILIPPO BELLATI
(Milan, information documented from 1805 to 1850)
(Milan, information documented from 1805 to 1850)
Ossian tells Malvina the deeds of his son Oscar
1811
Oil on canvas, 91.73 × 82.67 in.
Signed and dated on the bottom left
The discovery of this large-format painting marks an important addition to the catalogue of a quite interesting painter of the Neoclassical culture of Milan, with a specific reference to the years of Napoleonic domination.
[…] The subject of the painting is inspired by the very famous Songs of Ossian published by the Scottish author James MacPherson starting from 1760. As is known, MacPherson published the first volume in 1760 anonymously, collecting and translating with great imagination, counterfeiting and very often inventing, ancient Gaelic epic poems and attributing them to Ossian, a legendary bard of the Scottish tradition who lived, according to the legend, in the third century A.D. and was considered a sort of Nordic Homer.
[…] The subject of the painting is inspired by the very famous Songs of Ossian published by the Scottish author James MacPherson starting from 1760. As is known, MacPherson published the first volume in 1760 anonymously, collecting and translating with great imagination, counterfeiting and very often inventing, ancient Gaelic epic poems and attributing them to Ossian, a legendary bard of the Scottish tradition who lived, according to the legend, in the third century A.D. and was considered a sort of Nordic Homer.
Excerpt of the expertise by doc. Francesco Leone
