(Rome 1698–1757)
Arcadian landscape with riders near a fountain, referred: SPQR Pont. Max…,
oil on canvas, 54 x 108.5 cm, framed

We are grateful to Francesco Petrucci, who confirmed the attribution on the basis a high-resolution digital photograph.

The present painting is a characteristic work by Busiri, who made a name for himself as landscape painter in Rome from about 1720 onwards. He was probably self-taught, and soon became one of the most sought-after artists in his genre, which was especially appreciated among cultivated travellers from England. His paintings are close to the style of Jan Frans van Bloemen. Between 1739 and 1740, the English collector William Windham (born 1717) purchased some of his best-known works in Rome, after having almost certainly commissioned them directly from the artist. Windham purchased six oil paintings, all of which were executed shortly before 1740, including View of a Waterfall, which reveals the clear influence of Gaspard Dughet. He also bought twenty-six tempera paintings. All of these works are still preserved at the Windham family residence (Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk). Both the light colouring of the present painting and its delicate, loose brushwork reveal that Busiri preferred to work in tempera, rather than oil, and that he continued to use the lighter effect of this technique even for his oil paintings.