Ancient table, influence of Marco Ricci, winter landscape '700

Oil on canvas. In a winter countryside landscape, dusted with snow, on the bare, dark, and arid nature, a path winds through completely bare trees leading to the village, with a few passers-by using it, while on the side, woodcutters are at work. A sky full of dark clouds dominates the scene, although on the left there is a patch of blue. The style refers to the work of Marco Ricci, a painter from Belluno who made a name for himself with his undeniable talent for naturalistic and architectural representation. His landscapes, still distinctly seventeenth-century in taste, are already illuminated by powerful and emotional lights, featuring dry and twisted trees, rocks and towers, cumulus clouds that suddenly tear apart into waves of blue, a complex repertoire that transfigures nature into a dramatic and agitated representation. He has become a reference point for several other contemporary artists, who have adopted his style, as seen in this work. Restored and re-stretched, the painting is presented in a period frame.