Smoking Vulcano Painting

It certainly could be a very good copy... but I think it also could be an artist who used slightly different approaches when painting a similar scene a year or two apart.

I totally agree that it needs an expert, hands-on appraisal!

 

I agree with the hands-on appraisal idea. At the very least, send the pictures along to Christies and see what kind of reaction you get.

 

No reply from Christies yet. Have not written to Sothebys yet, should I?
Bonhams suggests an estimate of £5000-7000 subject to seeing it.
But they recommend selling it in London since the majority of the potential buyers would be Italian.
I addressed few further questions to them, like what if I send it to UK and turns not to be original, should it be reframed etc... Will keep you updated.

 

That's great news, Kard.

Their estimate seems low compared to some of the past auction results. I'd be curious why they thought this painting wouldn't go for as much?

 

The differences are so obvious. Take each item separately. The big ship - different shape, different sails. The flag on the left is different. The building on the left looks like a cliff on the right because the detail is lost. The figures are different and their placement in the painting is different. The shape of the clouds and the detailing are different. The mountains are different. The ocean is different. Artists may copy their own works with slight differences, but not the types of detail that differs between these two works. I'd be very happy for you if it's a genuine Gatta. I'd like to have an update when and if it's verified.

 

What building, that is a cliff.
Here are the three pictures together. The one in the middle is mine.
The left and the right are original according to the sources.
Compare the originals:
Big ship - different shape, different sails
Flag - not sure what do you mean different. Can't tell the details from the pictures.
The cliff on the left - different
Figures - different ones, different placements
Shape of clouds - different
Mountains - different
Ocean - different shades and sun reflection.
Small boats - different
Vulcano smoke - different
And more.....

Don't forget that the artist did not witnessed the eruption. The paintings were done after Sir William Hamilton’s reports on Vesuvius’s activity for the Royal Society.

 

What are you going to do with this picture? Are you sending it to Bonhams?

 

The info available online said he did several similar paintings of Vesuvius erupting, which totally fits this painting being similar to his known works but not identical.

Bev, I'm not sure what your point was? All I was trying to say was that unless a really good artist other than Gatta was trying to simulate his work, this sure looks like it's a genuine Gatta work. I didn't mean this was an exact copy of the other paintings.

 

If I were in Kard's shoes, I'd wait to see if Christie's replies. They may have sent it to an expert and it may take a while.

 

Well... a bird in the hand and all that. Bonham's has expressed interest. I think any major auction house will have access to the necessary expertise. That's going to cost kardinalisimo one way or another. I do not know how much, but it's going to cost regardless of which auction house it is sent to. It's going to require on-hand assessment by someone knowledgeable and that's going to cost.

Has this been sent to Christie's?

 

I filled out Christies online form but no reply yet. I thought they have nothing but experts there. It should not take that long for someone to take a look at the images.
I wish Bonhams did hands-on inspection here in US before I ship to their UK office.
Will email Sothebys these days.

 

NY kard.
I have been in communication with them.

 

Kard, the appropriate specialist at Christie's could have a backlog of work, or be out at a conference or on vacation, or who knows what. If it were me, I'd give them ample time to reply.

The one time I used Christie's form, they got back to me quickly... with a rejection. An acceptance of an unknown work by a known artist might take significant research on their part.

 

Did you see the auction results for Gatta's works? Here's the link again...
http://www.findartinfo.com/english/list-prices-by-artist/34895/saverio-xavier-della-gatta.html

Gatta's Vesuvius erupting paintings seem to bring the highest amounts at auction. Last January, two of his paintings were sold in a single Christie's auction, including one showing Vesuvius erupting and one a landscape without Vesuvius. Christie's estimate for the two paintings was $70,000 - $100,000 and it sold for $118,750.

The other results shown for Gatta paintings with views of Vesuvius were impressive as well.

This is why I think it's a good idea to talk with Christie's before preceding with a relatively low estimate from another auction house, especially since Bonham's reply indicates they think it's a genuine Gatta work.

 

The Sothebys paintings also sold for big bucks, but the pre-auction estimate was in line with the numbers Bonham's suggested.

Sothebys consulted a Madame Fabrizia Spirito before their sale. A person of that name is on Facebook.

 

I honestly don't know how much it matters which of the major auction houses handles a work like this. I'd actually like to know more about that.

If memory serves, the Christie's auctions were much more recent... can that help?

 

It's in the eye of the beholder. As for the cliff/building - I see BRICKS and a roofline on the painting on the left, but a smooth surface on yours. It's the brush strokes and style that I can't agree are Gatta's. I'm an artist. Artists have signature brush strokes and styles. Even if painted at a later date, I have trouble believing the artist would change his style completely.

 

As an artist, what do you think about the painting on the left compared to that on the right? Same brush strokes and style?
I see bricks on the right piece and none on the left. Which is the fake one?

 

Bev, as Kard said, the paintings on the left and right below are known, authenticated, Gatta works. From what I can see, the treatment of different elements, including the structure on the left, differs in these paintings.

The photos (and reproductions of the photos) may be distorting what's in the actual paintings, or Gatta may have taken different approaches each time. I can think of a number of reasons for his technique and depiction to have varied... perhaps he had more time to do some paintings than others, one or more work was done on commission and his patron had requests, he simply didn't want the paintings to look similar, and/or he wasn't satisfied with what he'd done previously and decided to do things differently.