Sebastiano Conca (Gaeta 1680 - Napoli 1764), Holy family with Saint Antonio from Padua and Saint Marc the Evangelist

Oil on copper cm. 26,6x34,2. Framed The painting bears a brush signature at the lower center: “EQUES CONCA”.


After his apprenticeship under Francesco Solimena in Naples, Sebastiano Conca moved to Rome in 1707, becoming one of the most renowned and authoritative artists active in the city, twice Prince of the Accademia di San Luca. His painting is distinguished by a successful combination of late Baroque elements, Marattesque classical balance, and a light proto-Rococo grace. In this elegant painting on copper, signed, we fully recognize the compositional mastery, decorative vivacity, fluid brushwork, and vivid, shimmering chromaticism that characterize his finest works.
The presence of the title “Eques” in the signature necessarily suggests a dating after 1729, when Cardinal Ottoboni awarded Conca the knighthood of the Order of the Golden Spur. Private collection, Umbria.