OVERDOOR PAINTING (supraporte / dessus-de-porte): Sleeping putti / bacchants

Oil on canvas, unsigned, in original gilded frame, dimensions 55 x 44 cm (painting), 70 x 59 cm (frame). Price € 850.

Painting and decoration come together in this charming brunaille of two putti, surrounded by bunches of grapes. The putti seem to be in a deep intoxication. Originally, this painting was placed above a fireplace (a so called dessus-de-cheminée) or incorporated in a nineteenth-century paneling. But it also comes into its own as a separate element in a modern interior. A brunaille is a variant of the grisaille and also a form of imitated sculpture. The brown-pink hue usually dominates in combination with the white linen of the canvas. That is clearly visible on our oval brunaille.

This beautifully framed nineteenth-century door top painting is from Belgium. The painting depicts two Bacchants (servants of Bacchus) who may have looked too deeply into the glass. The three bunches of grapes symbolize this Roman god of wine, also son of Jupiter. The puffy bodies of the two putti are painted beautifully. This also applies to the touching and lifelike faces. Decoration painters sometimes used real children as models to paint such figures.

This brunaille is in excellent condition, in its original frame, recently cleaned and provided with a thin matt varnish.

For further information, please also visit our Blog on door top paintings.