Attr. Francesco Giuseppe Casanova 1727-1803. Italian School 18th.Century Oil on panel. A stormy landscape with cattle and drovers. Circa.1770. Old attribution to Thomas Gainsborough and Christies Stencil to reverse. 68 by 51.2 cms. Some general craquelure as to be expected.
From a family of artists and a brother of the famous libertine and writer, Francesco was an Italian painter who specialized in battle scenes, dramatic landscapes, and pastoral works. He studied in Venice and Paris, later receiving Royal commissions from Catherine the Great of Russia.
The old attribution to Gainsborough to the reverse of the panel is in my view optimistic, Philippe Jacques De Loutherbourg 1740-1812 has been suggested as a possible author, however the dramatic pairing of everyday rustic life with the overwhelming power of nature is slightly more characteristic of Casanova's storm landscapes. The use of a wooden panel, the treatment of the faces and the figures leads to a pretty firm attribution to his hand.
GB