The leading artist of Bologna, Guido Reni (1575-1642), is represented both by a beguiling black and red chalk Head Study and the important, rare, oil on copper Magdalene that epitomizes Reni's reputation as "Il Divino" among 17th century Bolognese painters. Domenico Piola (1627-1703), one of the leading artists in Genoa from the second half of the 17th century, depicts a variation on the theme of the Holy Family in his dynamic Madonna and Child with St John. The great Baroque portraitist Anthony Van Dyck (1599-1641) is represented by his highly sympathetic portrayal of fellow artist and close friend Lucas de Wael, dating from his Genoese period. Another Italian highlight is the dramatic Ship in a Storm off a Rocky Coast by Monsù Montagna (c.1608-1660), which was commissioned by the 10th Duke of Mantua for the Ducal residence and which has more recently been in the famous Schulenburg Collection in Berlin. In a similarly romantic vein but of later date are a pair of rare landscapes by the noted English visionary John Martin (1789-1854): Adam and Eve Driven out of Paradise and The Approach of the Archangel Michael are part of a group of 24 canvases which are preparatory works for the mezzotint illustrations to Milton's Paradise Lost. A Forest Still Life by Elias van den Broeck (1657-1708) exemplifies Dutch naturalist technique-highly focused and precisely depicted insects, snails emerging from their shells, grasshoppers in flight, beetles and butterflies.

The drawings from Aldega/Gordon are accompanied by a catalogue by Professor Daniele Benati, eminent authority on Bolognese art. From preparatory studies to highly finished works, the drawings cover many subjects and types-designs for architecture, furniture and the stage, mythical, religious and genre scenes-and represent numerous artists, such as Marcantonio Raimondi, Bartolomeo Passarotti, Annibale Carracci, Guercino, Guido Reni, Simone Cantarini and Donato Creti. Two pen and ink landscapes are of particular interest: the small, elegant Landscape with Washerwoman by Annibale Carracci (1560-1609) the preeminent 17th century Italian classicist, and the spirited Landscape with a Farmhouse by Guercino (1591-1666), which once was part of the famous British old master drawings collection at Holkham Hall in Great Britain.