Luigi Conconi (Italian, 1852-1917) La regina di cuori (The queen of hearts) Oil on silk mounted on panel 17 x 34 inches (43.2 x 86.4 cm) Signed and indistinctly inscribed along lower edge: Conconi [...] Property from the Dr. Sheldon G. and Irma H. Gilgore Collection of Italian Art 1850-1925 PROVENANCE: Interart Cultural Exchange, New York; Acquired from the above, October 19, 1992. EXHIBITED: The Gilgore Collection, Naples, Florida, "The Winds of Change, The Milanese Avant-Garde 1860-1900," 2003, no. 46. LITERATURE: R. Giolli, Luigi Conconi, Architetto e pittore, Alfieri & LaCroix, Rome and Milan, 1920, p. 34-35; G. Ginex, "Luigi Conconi. Works in the Gilgore Collection," in Winds of Change, The Milanese Avant Garde 1860-1908, exh. cat., p. 124. Luigi Conconi's medieval and fairy-tale paintings continued in the 1890s with La regina di cuori, the female figure wearing a costume similar to that of Motivo medievale (see lot 69057). Inspired by the Brothers Grimm's "The Frog Prince," the figure holds a frog, wishing her love would transform him into a prince, while dark animal shapes, including a bat, swirl around her head, perhaps reflecting the artist's imaginative interpretation of the magical curse. The artist's studio was filled with mummified or stuffed dogs, cats, and bats, as well as a well-loved pet frog, all of which likely served as inspiration for his fantastical imagery (Ginex, p. 124). HID12401132022 © 2026 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved www.HA.com/TexasAuctioneerLicenseNotice

The Gilgore Collection, Naples, Florida, "The Winds of Change, The Milanese Avant-Garde 1860-1900," 2003, no. 46.

Interart Cultural Exchange, New York; Acquired by the present owner from the above, October 19, 1992.

Scattered foxing, abrasions, and two areas of discoloration in silk. Framed under glass.
Framed Dimensions 23 X 40 Inches