Fierce Reality. Italian Masters from Seventeenth Century Naples

The fifty paintings and essays that make up this original exhibition catalogue depict life in Naples during the city's Golden Age of prestige and prosperity.
The 17th century sparked a golden age for art in Naples. It was a period of extraordinary achievement in painting characterized by a level of originality and quality that placed Naples at the centre of international artistic taste. An almost continuous quantity of remarkable artistic accomplishments in Naples at this time left an indelible imprint on the history of European art.
This exhibition catalogue, organized by Phoenix Art Museum in conjunction with Arthemisia Ltd., Rome, and with the cooperation of the Neapolitan Museum Authority (Soprintendenza Speciale per il Polo Museale Napoletano), will present 50 paintings, including some familiar icons as well as many important works visiting North America for the first time, by such artists as Artemisia Gentileschi, Francesco Solimena, Luca Giordano, Francesco Guarino, Mico Spadaro, Salvatore Rosa, Jusepe De Ribera and more. The paintings depict religious and secular subjects, still life, portraiture, and 17th century city life in Naples, including the ravages of rebellion and plague, and moments of great triumph.