While known for his rich and abundant still lifes, Pier Francesco Cittadini’s fusion of realism and classicism gained him a reputation as an esteemed portraitist in his own day, winning him considerable success particularly in Bologna. His portraits were well documented in prestigious Bolognese collections, such as the Portrait of a Girl with a plate of cherries and the Portrait of a Lady with two Children belonging to the Zambeccari family, now held in the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna (inv. nos. 32 and 81).
Having trained in Milan with Daniele Crespi, from whom he learnt the practice of painting from life, Cittadini moved to Bologna after the plague of 1630, where he entered the studio of Guido Reni. In the mid-1640s, the artist journeyed to Rome, where he came into contact with French and Flemish artists residing in the city, an experience that would transform both his technique and subject matter, giving rise to an original artistic vocabulary. In this picture, Cittadini combines the detailed illusionism of Flemish art with the naturalistic current of Lombard painting, of which he was a leading exponent.