Angelo Zoffoli
1860-1910 | Italian

Cardinal with Elegant Company

Signed "A. Zoffoli Roma" (lower right)
Oil on canvas

A sumptuously dressed cardinal enjoys the company of a fabulously extravagant party in this striking oil on canvas by the Italian painter Angelo Zoffoli. The vibrantly hued painting illustrates the artist’s genius at rendering delightful narratives in remarkable detail. Entitled Cardinal with Elegant Company, the work is a superb example of Zoffoli's technical virtuosity—from the elaborate gowns, coats and powdered wigs of the guests to the marbled and gilded interior, every opulent detail is meticulously captured.

Such works satirizing the clergy would have been severely censured just a generation earlier. Yet, by the time Zoffoli picked up the brush, the public had grown discontent with the hypocrisy of the clergy, many of whom enjoyed lavish lifestyles. Cardinal paintings such as this became highly popular during the period, and Zoffoli emerged alongside Georges Croegaert and Andrea Landini as some of the leading painters of this genre.

19th century

Canvas: 23" high x 38 1/2" wide (58.42 x 97.79 cm)
Frame: 26 1/2" high x 42 1/4" wide x 2" deep (67.31 x 107.32 x 5.08 cm)

Provenance:
Private Collection, Virginia
Private Collection
M.S. Rau, New Orleans
Private Collection, Texas
M.S. Rau, New Orleans