Portrait of a Woman

Giovanni Battista Gaulli's Portrait of a Woman from the 1670s reflects the portraiture practice of an artist better known for his spectacular ceiling fresco in the Gesù church in Rome. Gaulli, called Il Baciccio, was one of the leading painters of the Roman high Baroque, patronized by the Bernini circle and by powerful religious orders. His portraits, less numerous than his decorative works, demonstrate the warm coloring and psychological presence he absorbed from Van Dyck.

Gaulli's oil-on-canvas portrait demonstrates his rich, warm palette and fluid brushwork, with the flesh tones achieving a luminous vitality. The Baroque dynamism and chromatic richness reflect the influence of Van Dyck and Rubens, whose works Gaulli studied closely in Genoese collections.