A North-Italian Rococo Lacca Povera Ribalta, Probably Venice, Mid-18th Century

Sotheby's New York, Ariane Dandois, 25 October 2007, lot 717 ($67,000)

An arte povera commode of Piedmontese origin with similar decoration is illustrated, Elisabetta Barbolini Ferrari, Mobili Dipinti, Tempera, Lacca ed Arte povera nelle botteghe italiane tra XVII e XVIII secolo, Modena 2004, p. 150.

The art of lacca known variously as lacca povera, arte povera, or lacca contrafatta povera originated in Venice.

Venice, with its extensive trading contacts with the East, was one of the first cities in Europe to produce imitations of japanned cabinets and oriental lacquer such as this example are among the most spectacular of all the creations of the Venetian cabinet-makers. The artisans, faced with the high costs and long preparations of traditional lacquer, sought a new cheaper process and discovered that ready-made designs could be applied to the furniture by gluing cut-out engravings of very thin paper directly onto furniture, they would then be colored. The final step was applying a thick varnish which created a uniform film, giving a finished "lacquered" appearance. The printed scenes, which vary from extravagant rocailles, to maritime scenes and Watteauesque pastorales, are all set on a ground of golden yellow, which gives a tremendously rich visual scheme to the present ribalta,