Francesco Zugno
Italy, 1709-87
Young Noble Couple Playing Cards on a Terrace with Attendants, ca. 1755
Oil on canvas.
Zugno was one of the closest and best followers of Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. His mature style is readily distinguished from Tiepolo�s by its greater delicacy, soft contour, and sweeter color. His gentle and elegant manner surely reflects some knowledge of contemporary French painting, especially the school of Jean-Antoine Watteau. This picture shows a young couple playing cards under the supervision of an older couple � her guardians? � and attended by two pages. In such a context, the game becomes a metaphor for courtship.