The Night Forest is a collection of new collection of jewel-like paintings by Denise Allan.

These exquisite paintings on board are painted to resemble the inlay of shell, marble and polished gemstones used in a technique called pietra dura that was made popular throughout Renaissance Italy.

(This example is a Florentine pietra dura cabinet from Bonhams)

Pietra Dura, which translates to 'hard stone' is often described as 'painting in stone'. The technique involves inlaying pieces of polished precious and semi-precious stones, shells and minerals into a background of dark marble to create the illusion of realistic textures, objects and animals.

For this new collection of paintings, Denise retracted the history of pietra dura from ancient Rome to Persia and India and finally to the height of its popularity in 17th century Florence and found at the heart of it, the artist Jacopo Ligozzi (1547-1626). One of the most prolific artists working in Florence in the 1600's, Jacopo Ligozzi was famous as a miniaturist painter of natural objects who also designed for the Florentine pietra dura workshops (see cabinet above).

Detail from: Tulip and Woodland Dianthus by Denise Allan

It was in this busy Renaissance workshop that Ligozzi's designs of birds, flora and fauna were masterfully recreated in stone, shell and marble to achieve that dramatic sense of illusion which pietra dura is known for. It is these designs that have inspired this new collection of painted panels by Denise Allan, which takes the medium full circle; from stone inlay back to the painted designs of Jacopo Ligozzi.

In her signature trompe l'oeil style, using paint instead of stone, Denise Allan manages to paint subjects such as woodland flowers, birds and forest animals with the same luminosity and character as if they too were made of slivers of stone, minerals and mother of pearl.

These strange otherworldly scenes, set against dark backdrops, are set in black panelled frames to reference the furniture and cabinets that Italian pietra dura was originally made for.

Alongside the flowers and birds, animals set in dark forest like landscapes were also popular in the 16th and 17th century examples (as seen in the cabinet above).

Denise has been inspired by this cabinet in particular and has created a group of intriguing and sparse scenes of animals amongst oversized flora. A wild brown rabbit, deer, boar and a pair of hounds can all be seen in this midnight forest.

Detail from Greyhound, White a painted panel by Denise Allan