Decade 1650-1659
See also : Ancient painting Ancient French painting Old Dutch masters Italian painting 1300-1700 Louis XIV to XVI Prints Ancient prints
1650 Sunrise on a Roman Seaport
2013 SOLD 5 M£ including premium
Claude Gellée, whose artist name is Le Lorrain, is a contemporary of Poussin. Both are working in Rome, the capital of the arts, but their vision is different. Lorrain is not a mystic. He is interested in landscapes in extreme daylights.
On December 3 in London, Christie's sells an oil on canvas 101 x 135 cm, estimated £ 3M, recently rediscovered after having remained out of sight for more than a century.
This painting was done in 1650 on order of a cardinal. The artist honors a local saint: during the reign of the pious emperor Theodosius, a woman named Paula left Rome to live the hermit adventure under the direction of Jerome who is indeed the only recorder of her hagiography.
From the perspective of Christian iconography this action is not spectacular, but the sunrise on a fancy Mediterranean seaport is sumptuous. Much later, Turner complacently recognized the considerable influence of Lorrain on his own vision.
The antique columns that close the left edge of the picture anticipate by more than half a century the fashion of the Roman capricci and the tall ships are worthy of a van de Velde.
POST SALE COMMENT
The quality and rarity of this painting led it to £ 5M including premium.
On December 3 in London, Christie's sells an oil on canvas 101 x 135 cm, estimated £ 3M, recently rediscovered after having remained out of sight for more than a century.
This painting was done in 1650 on order of a cardinal. The artist honors a local saint: during the reign of the pious emperor Theodosius, a woman named Paula left Rome to live the hermit adventure under the direction of Jerome who is indeed the only recorder of her hagiography.
From the perspective of Christian iconography this action is not spectacular, but the sunrise on a fancy Mediterranean seaport is sumptuous. Much later, Turner complacently recognized the considerable influence of Lorrain on his own vision.
The antique columns that close the left edge of the picture anticipate by more than half a century the fashion of the Roman capricci and the tall ships are worthy of a van de Velde.
POST SALE COMMENT
The quality and rarity of this painting led it to £ 5M including premium.
1650 Velazquez in Rome
2018 SOLD for $ 4.1M including premium
The skills of Diego Velazquez are recognized in the court of King Felipe IV who names him ayuda de camara (valet) in 1643 and superintendente de obras (superintendent of works) in the following year. Having thus become one of the closest collaborators of the king, he requests and obtains a mission in Italy to acquire paintings and sculptures worthy of the royal collection.
His first stay in Italy in 1629-1630 had much contributed to his artistic training but he was still unknown in that country when he arrived in Rome in 1649. He immediately portrayed his assistant, the mulatto slave Juan de Pareja. The Romans were dazzled by the physical and psychological resemblance between man and painting. Velazquez is the best portraitist of his time, or even of all time.
The doors open wide for Velazquez. In August 1650 Pope Innocent X sits for him. The artist wants to do better than Titian and takes a great care in the attitude and in the colors. Admiring the masterpiece, the pope famously says : "Troppo vero".
Major prelates now desire a similar portrait of them. At that time Velazquez works slowly. If he accepts, he endangers the mission for his king while his return is awaited with an impatience soon to be officially notified. If he refuses, he loses his best protectors for the acquisition of the works of art promised to the king.
The portrait of Monsignor Cristoforo Segni reveals the clever solution found by Velazquez. This outstanding person sits in an armchair and holds a paper in his hand, on the model of the portrait of the pope. The paper has the same role of identifying the artist and the prelate. For Segni the name of another artist, Pietro Martire Neri, is also indicated near that text.
This double authentication has puzzled all art historians, especially since no collaboration between Velazquez and Neri has ever been documented. The sharpness and expression of the face could however not have been achieved by Neri whose personal known work is rather mediocre. Segni's head is an autograph painting by Velazquez. Neri completed the rest, possibly after the departure of Velazquez from Rome.
This oil on canvas 114 x 92 cm is estimated $ 3M for sale by Sotheby's in New York on February 1, lot 48. The image is shared by Wikimedia. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
His first stay in Italy in 1629-1630 had much contributed to his artistic training but he was still unknown in that country when he arrived in Rome in 1649. He immediately portrayed his assistant, the mulatto slave Juan de Pareja. The Romans were dazzled by the physical and psychological resemblance between man and painting. Velazquez is the best portraitist of his time, or even of all time.
The doors open wide for Velazquez. In August 1650 Pope Innocent X sits for him. The artist wants to do better than Titian and takes a great care in the attitude and in the colors. Admiring the masterpiece, the pope famously says : "Troppo vero".
Major prelates now desire a similar portrait of them. At that time Velazquez works slowly. If he accepts, he endangers the mission for his king while his return is awaited with an impatience soon to be officially notified. If he refuses, he loses his best protectors for the acquisition of the works of art promised to the king.
The portrait of Monsignor Cristoforo Segni reveals the clever solution found by Velazquez. This outstanding person sits in an armchair and holds a paper in his hand, on the model of the portrait of the pope. The paper has the same role of identifying the artist and the prelate. For Segni the name of another artist, Pietro Martire Neri, is also indicated near that text.
This double authentication has puzzled all art historians, especially since no collaboration between Velazquez and Neri has ever been documented. The sharpness and expression of the face could however not have been achieved by Neri whose personal known work is rather mediocre. Segni's head is an autograph painting by Velazquez. Neri completed the rest, possibly after the departure of Velazquez from Rome.
This oil on canvas 114 x 92 cm is estimated $ 3M for sale by Sotheby's in New York on February 1, lot 48. The image is shared by Wikimedia. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
1651 The Baroque Myths of Guercino
2010 SOLD 5.2 M£ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
Born in Italy but masterfully continued by Rubens, the Baroque art is rooted in an unconditional Christianity which is however questioning other sources of mysticism.
Guercino, who works in Bologna, is a typical Italian painter of this movement. We discussed him recently in this column, illustrating a Tasso's theme about the impossible relationship between Christians and Muslims during the Crusades. His work is characterized by the emotion in the action, and catches the eyes through the quality of colors.
In 1651, in the purest Baroque trend, an Italian knight places an order to him for a pair of paintings, a Prophet and a Sibyl. The prophet will be King David, considered in the Bible as the ancestor of Christ. The Sibyl is a classical theme recovered from paganism, by the fact that their exegetes saw Christian announcements in some of their words.
The pair of paintings came in 1768 to adorn Spencer House, the London residence of the rich and powerful family who wanted to be the arbiter of taste. On July 6 in London, Lord Spencer and his trustees put up for sale at Christie's the King David of Guercino, estimated £ 5 million.
This large oil on canvas, 223 x 170 cm, shows the Hebrew prophet in his middle age, seated, calm and dignified, displaying a tablet with a text of the Psalms.
POST SALE COMMENT
This large size painting by Guercino was probably the most important work of this artist to be presented at auction, and it was fresh on the market. The estimate was too high, but the sale is successful: £ 5.2 million including premium.
Born in Italy but masterfully continued by Rubens, the Baroque art is rooted in an unconditional Christianity which is however questioning other sources of mysticism.
Guercino, who works in Bologna, is a typical Italian painter of this movement. We discussed him recently in this column, illustrating a Tasso's theme about the impossible relationship between Christians and Muslims during the Crusades. His work is characterized by the emotion in the action, and catches the eyes through the quality of colors.
In 1651, in the purest Baroque trend, an Italian knight places an order to him for a pair of paintings, a Prophet and a Sibyl. The prophet will be King David, considered in the Bible as the ancestor of Christ. The Sibyl is a classical theme recovered from paganism, by the fact that their exegetes saw Christian announcements in some of their words.
The pair of paintings came in 1768 to adorn Spencer House, the London residence of the rich and powerful family who wanted to be the arbiter of taste. On July 6 in London, Lord Spencer and his trustees put up for sale at Christie's the King David of Guercino, estimated £ 5 million.
This large oil on canvas, 223 x 170 cm, shows the Hebrew prophet in his middle age, seated, calm and dignified, displaying a tablet with a text of the Psalms.
POST SALE COMMENT
This large size painting by Guercino was probably the most important work of this artist to be presented at auction, and it was fresh on the market. The estimate was too high, but the sale is successful: £ 5.2 million including premium.
1655 Vermeer's Pigments
2014 SOLD 6.2 M£ including premium
Johannes Vermeer began his career in Delft at the best period of Dutch painting. The details of the development of his artistic genius are a mystery. Son of an innkeeper also involved as a merchant of art, he is probably self-taught.
His early works are copies: Diana and her companions from Jacob van Loo, and Christ in the House of Martha and Mary from Erasmus Quellin. The young artist exercised his skills in mythological and Christian themes.
In 1969, the discovery of the ancient unretouched inscription 'Meer 1655' in a copy of a Florentine painting starts a long series of analyzes and assumptions. This oil on canvas 102 x 82 cm on the theme of Saint Praxedis is accepted since 1986 as a genuine Vermeer. The isotopic analysis of lead white pigment later confirmed this attribution.
Lead white enables to compare the location. This color was common and artists did not carry it in their travels. Particles collected in the white of Diana and Praxedis reveal a strictly identical composition.
The ultramarine blue paint in the sky of Praxedis is also interesting because it was a very expensive pigment. Its use by a novice painter is a proof of his commitment to perfection and of his ambition.
The image shows Praxedis wringing a sponge soaked with the blood of a beheaded martyr visible in the background. Her hands clasped in that action also hold a crucifix. This rare and poignant scene has certainly moved Vermeer who had converted to Catholicism when he married two years earlier.
The three works mentioned above are the whole of the known work of Vermeer before he specialized in the contemporary themes that will ensure his glory.
The Saint Praxedis by Vermeer is estimated £ 6M for sale by Christie's in London on July 8.
POST SALE COMMENT
This very interesting and extremely rare example from the formative years of Vermeer was sold for £ 6.2 million including premium.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
His early works are copies: Diana and her companions from Jacob van Loo, and Christ in the House of Martha and Mary from Erasmus Quellin. The young artist exercised his skills in mythological and Christian themes.
In 1969, the discovery of the ancient unretouched inscription 'Meer 1655' in a copy of a Florentine painting starts a long series of analyzes and assumptions. This oil on canvas 102 x 82 cm on the theme of Saint Praxedis is accepted since 1986 as a genuine Vermeer. The isotopic analysis of lead white pigment later confirmed this attribution.
Lead white enables to compare the location. This color was common and artists did not carry it in their travels. Particles collected in the white of Diana and Praxedis reveal a strictly identical composition.
The ultramarine blue paint in the sky of Praxedis is also interesting because it was a very expensive pigment. Its use by a novice painter is a proof of his commitment to perfection and of his ambition.
The image shows Praxedis wringing a sponge soaked with the blood of a beheaded martyr visible in the background. Her hands clasped in that action also hold a crucifix. This rare and poignant scene has certainly moved Vermeer who had converted to Catholicism when he married two years earlier.
The three works mentioned above are the whole of the known work of Vermeer before he specialized in the contemporary themes that will ensure his glory.
The Saint Praxedis by Vermeer is estimated £ 6M for sale by Christie's in London on July 8.
POST SALE COMMENT
This very interesting and extremely rare example from the formative years of Vermeer was sold for £ 6.2 million including premium.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1655 The Art of Dry Point
2018 SOLD for £ 2.65M including premium
The greatest painters such as Dürer, Rembrandt, Goya and Munch also wanted to create images. In 1653 Rembrandt manages to enlarge the format of his prints.
His solutions are innovative. The dry point was used until then in addition to etching and chisel for minor reworks of the drawing. Rembrandt attempts compositions entirely in dry point. Applied obliquely like a pencil, his needle improves the variety of the line. The incision of the point in the copper is shallow, allowing a harmony between the drawing and the inkings left voluntarily on the plate to bring contrasts and shadows.
A fine image deserves a great paper. Rembrandt was seduced by a stock recently imported in Amsterdam by the Dutch East India Company, with a beautiful light brown-yellow hue and a fibre that does not absorb ink and provides a sharpness comparable to vellum.
His first masterpiece in these improved techniques is The Three Crosses (Christ crucified between the two thieves), 38 x 45 cm, made in 1653. He prepares shortly after in the same size another scene of the Passion, Ecce Homo (Christ presented to the people). The oriental paper is smaller than his copperplate and he adds a narrow extra stripe at the top of the image.
An impression of the first state of Ecce Homo is for sale by Christie's in London on July 5, lot 22. The press release of April 30 announces an estimate in the region of US $ 3M to 5M. It is the only copy remaining in private hands from the first four states of this image.
The copper plates wear out, preventing large printing. The artist deliberately blurs some damaged areas of Ecce Homo after its fourth state. The eighth and last state is dated 1655. For the fourth and penultimate state of the Three Crosses around 1661, he works differently, replacing the subtle smoky contrasts by diagonal streaks.
This solution could not satisfy the artist because of the painstaking preparation of the ink shades and of the necessarily incomplete and frustrating repairs to the worn plates. He will not reuse this technique, giving up the possible project of a dry point series on the Passion of Christ.
His solutions are innovative. The dry point was used until then in addition to etching and chisel for minor reworks of the drawing. Rembrandt attempts compositions entirely in dry point. Applied obliquely like a pencil, his needle improves the variety of the line. The incision of the point in the copper is shallow, allowing a harmony between the drawing and the inkings left voluntarily on the plate to bring contrasts and shadows.
A fine image deserves a great paper. Rembrandt was seduced by a stock recently imported in Amsterdam by the Dutch East India Company, with a beautiful light brown-yellow hue and a fibre that does not absorb ink and provides a sharpness comparable to vellum.
His first masterpiece in these improved techniques is The Three Crosses (Christ crucified between the two thieves), 38 x 45 cm, made in 1653. He prepares shortly after in the same size another scene of the Passion, Ecce Homo (Christ presented to the people). The oriental paper is smaller than his copperplate and he adds a narrow extra stripe at the top of the image.
An impression of the first state of Ecce Homo is for sale by Christie's in London on July 5, lot 22. The press release of April 30 announces an estimate in the region of US $ 3M to 5M. It is the only copy remaining in private hands from the first four states of this image.
The copper plates wear out, preventing large printing. The artist deliberately blurs some damaged areas of Ecce Homo after its fourth state. The eighth and last state is dated 1655. For the fourth and penultimate state of the Three Crosses around 1661, he works differently, replacing the subtle smoky contrasts by diagonal streaks.
This solution could not satisfy the artist because of the painstaking preparation of the ink shades and of the necessarily incomplete and frustrating repairs to the worn plates. He will not reuse this technique, giving up the possible project of a dry point series on the Passion of Christ.
Rare Rembrandt Print at Christie’s London in July https://t.co/99TSYVaBkp pic.twitter.com/wwG1KoLWE4
— Art Market Monitor (@artmarket) May 2, 2018
mid 1650s Lely by Himself
2016 SOLD for £ 870K including premium
King Charles I was a great lover of art at a time when the greatest painters are working on the continent. He failed to interest Rubens for a permanent position at his court but he got Van Dyck who created the fashion for the portraits of personalities which he brought to perfection by the realism and flexibility of his style.
The untimely death of Van Dyck in 1641 does not stop this trend. The place is free for other young foreigners. Pieter van der Faes arrives in London around that time. He uses the pseudonym Peter Lely, easier to pronounce and evoking the nearly heraldic symbol of the lily which he explained by a decorative gable on the house of his father.
Peter Lely was an extremely prolific artist who used many assistants. Friendly and worldly, he led his career without interruption despite the political turmoil of the time from Charles I to the Commonwealth and to the Stuart Restoration.
The legendary request by Cromwell inviting Lely to realize his portrait with all his warts is indirectly a tribute to the realism and psychology in the art of Lely. Later, Charles II let him represent in the guise of Venus the famous official mistress Nell Gwyn.
Peter Lely was also a great draughtsman. On July 6 in London, Sotheby's sells a self-portrait 39 x 31 cm in black chalk subtly enhanced in colors and white, lot 216 estimated £ 600K. It had been kept until now in the descendance of the artist.
The man is young and proud of himself, in an ample clothing, elbows on a table. The face is young with a thin mustache. The lines of his curly natural hair, very long in the fashion of that time, are remarkably accurate. The viewing angle is the same as in another self-portrait without surrounding made around 1641 but the experts prefer dating the drawing for sale from the mid-1650s.
The untimely death of Van Dyck in 1641 does not stop this trend. The place is free for other young foreigners. Pieter van der Faes arrives in London around that time. He uses the pseudonym Peter Lely, easier to pronounce and evoking the nearly heraldic symbol of the lily which he explained by a decorative gable on the house of his father.
Peter Lely was an extremely prolific artist who used many assistants. Friendly and worldly, he led his career without interruption despite the political turmoil of the time from Charles I to the Commonwealth and to the Stuart Restoration.
The legendary request by Cromwell inviting Lely to realize his portrait with all his warts is indirectly a tribute to the realism and psychology in the art of Lely. Later, Charles II let him represent in the guise of Venus the famous official mistress Nell Gwyn.
Peter Lely was also a great draughtsman. On July 6 in London, Sotheby's sells a self-portrait 39 x 31 cm in black chalk subtly enhanced in colors and white, lot 216 estimated £ 600K. It had been kept until now in the descendance of the artist.
The man is young and proud of himself, in an ample clothing, elbows on a table. The face is young with a thin mustache. The lines of his curly natural hair, very long in the fashion of that time, are remarkably accurate. The viewing angle is the same as in another self-portrait without surrounding made around 1641 but the experts prefer dating the drawing for sale from the mid-1650s.
#AuctionUpdate: #Record for a work on paper by Sir #PeterLely - his masterful self-portrait soars to £869K in London pic.twitter.com/sduOUuZRwk
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) July 6, 2016
1658 Rembrandt and Experts
2009 SOLD 20.2 M£ including premium
This morning in London, Christie's has invited the press to unveil a painting by Rembrandt that will be sold on December 8. This is sensible: the market for ancient art has a reputation of being little affected by the financial crisis.
It is a half-length portrait of a man, painted in 1658. It had not been seen publicly since 1970 and has not participated in the major exhibition made by the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam in 2006 to celebrate the 400 th anniversary of the birth of the artist. It is estimated £ 18 million.
Rembrandt is the best studied artist in the world. Under the name of Rembrandt Research Project, a multidisciplinary team has been working since 1968 to authenticate or refute all the works that could be attributed to the master. This team, which was renewed several times, includes art historians and scientists.
Among the scientific methods used, we first think of the X-ray, of course. Do not neglect the dendrochronology, which allows to date the felling of the oak trees whose panels were used by the master. Historians, meanwhile, compared the artworks together by considering a consistency of style in order to separate the works of the master from those of his employees.
This work sponsored by the University of Amsterdam is extremely important. Thanks to these pioneers the ancient art has become the most exciting area of artistic expertise.
ADDENDUM
Small precision now that the official press release from Christie's is available on the web: the artwork for sale is on canvas, 107 x 87 cm.
My comments on dendrochronology do not apply to this work.
POST SALE COMMENT
The release by Christie's on Twitter expresses the essential: Rembrandt sells for £ 20.2M : the world auction record for a Rembrandt and the 4th highest price for an old master painting at auction.
The quoted price includes the premium.
I would add that this Rembrandt was important but not to the point of being described as historic. It is therefore quite understandable that it has not exceeded its estimate.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
It is a half-length portrait of a man, painted in 1658. It had not been seen publicly since 1970 and has not participated in the major exhibition made by the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam in 2006 to celebrate the 400 th anniversary of the birth of the artist. It is estimated £ 18 million.
Rembrandt is the best studied artist in the world. Under the name of Rembrandt Research Project, a multidisciplinary team has been working since 1968 to authenticate or refute all the works that could be attributed to the master. This team, which was renewed several times, includes art historians and scientists.
Among the scientific methods used, we first think of the X-ray, of course. Do not neglect the dendrochronology, which allows to date the felling of the oak trees whose panels were used by the master. Historians, meanwhile, compared the artworks together by considering a consistency of style in order to separate the works of the master from those of his employees.
This work sponsored by the University of Amsterdam is extremely important. Thanks to these pioneers the ancient art has become the most exciting area of artistic expertise.
ADDENDUM
Small precision now that the official press release from Christie's is available on the web: the artwork for sale is on canvas, 107 x 87 cm.
My comments on dendrochronology do not apply to this work.
POST SALE COMMENT
The release by Christie's on Twitter expresses the essential: Rembrandt sells for £ 20.2M : the world auction record for a Rembrandt and the 4th highest price for an old master painting at auction.
The quoted price includes the premium.
I would add that this Rembrandt was important but not to the point of being described as historic. It is therefore quite understandable that it has not exceeded its estimate.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The Dyer of Amsterdam
2019 SOLD for $ 4.8M including premium
Jan van de Cappelle is the son of a rich cloth dyer from Amsterdam. Compared to the offer on the art market, his financial means are unlimited. He is in his own right a prolific draftsman and a talented painter. From 1645 to 1679, between his first dated painting and his probably untimely death, he is the specialist of calm marines, undoubtedly under the influence of his friend de Vlieger.
Van de Cappelle observes the reflections of gray clouds in the rippling waters of shores and harbors. The blue sky and the storms as well as wars and shipwrecks do not concern him. Like Heda in Haarlem for still lifes, he follows with great realism the complex paths of light.
He does not belong to any guild and therefore in principle does not have the right to sell his art. Yet very few of his own paintings are found in the fabulous inventory of his deceased estate. He certainly had a practice of exchange with the greatest masters. His art evolves little, making it very difficult to date his works.
He is the only person whose portrait was painted by both Rembrandt and Hals. He owned more than 500 drawings by Rembrandt, acquired in the opportunities of the financial difficulties of the artist, plus 1300 by de Vlieger, 900 by Avercamp and 400 by van Goyen. His collection of nearly 200 paintings included Dutch, Flemish and German top masters.
On January 30 in New York, Sotheby's sells an oil on panel 62 x 83 cm painted by van de Cappelle probably in the 1650s. It is estimated $ 4M, lot 61. An oil on canvas 48 x 53 cm dated 1653 has been sold for £ 3.6M including premium by Christie's on July 8, 2005.
In the same 2019 sale and from the same collection, other rare paintings by independent or dilettante artists are offered : one by Joachim Wtewael and two by Jacobus Vrel. They also have been discussed in this column.
Van de Cappelle observes the reflections of gray clouds in the rippling waters of shores and harbors. The blue sky and the storms as well as wars and shipwrecks do not concern him. Like Heda in Haarlem for still lifes, he follows with great realism the complex paths of light.
He does not belong to any guild and therefore in principle does not have the right to sell his art. Yet very few of his own paintings are found in the fabulous inventory of his deceased estate. He certainly had a practice of exchange with the greatest masters. His art evolves little, making it very difficult to date his works.
He is the only person whose portrait was painted by both Rembrandt and Hals. He owned more than 500 drawings by Rembrandt, acquired in the opportunities of the financial difficulties of the artist, plus 1300 by de Vlieger, 900 by Avercamp and 400 by van Goyen. His collection of nearly 200 paintings included Dutch, Flemish and German top masters.
On January 30 in New York, Sotheby's sells an oil on panel 62 x 83 cm painted by van de Cappelle probably in the 1650s. It is estimated $ 4M, lot 61. An oil on canvas 48 x 53 cm dated 1653 has been sold for £ 3.6M including premium by Christie's on July 8, 2005.
In the same 2019 sale and from the same collection, other rare paintings by independent or dilettante artists are offered : one by Joachim Wtewael and two by Jacobus Vrel. They also have been discussed in this column.
1650-1660 Ferdinand Bol inspired by Rembrandt
2009 SOLD 1.3 M€ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
Of these two artists, Rembrandt is the master, undoubtedly. But Ferdinand Bol, who was ten years younger, is nevertheless an important painter, to the extent that some of his paintings were long attributed to Rembrandt.
A characteristic of Bol artwork is the large size of his biblical scenes inspired by the Old Testament. By consulting Artvalue, we see a dynamic Angel appearing to Elijah, 162 x 178 cm, sold £ 1.36 million inclusive by Sotheby's in London on 5 December 2007.
The expert Eric Turquin, well known in the auctions in France, introduces Eliezer and Rebecca at the Well, in a very interesting video in French on Interencheres.tv. The scene shows the young woman drinking the traveler, in the presence of her servant. The two main characters, attentive to one another, have a great psychological presence.
This large oil on canvas, 185 x 170 cm, dating from 1650 - 1660, will be sold by Versailles Enchères on June 14 at Versailles, in the condition where it was found. Mr. Turquin demonstrates how it has suffered from time. It was resized two hundred years ago, the harmony of colors and lights is tarnished by a centenary varnish that has yellowed, and the seam between the two canvas panels became visible.
In these conditions, the estimate of K € 400 seems reasonable.
POST SALE COMMENT
Here is a very interesting result: € 1.3 million including expenses.
The beauty and authenticity of this painting have prevailed on its condition. This condition may even have been an advantage because the fans of ancient art love the works that are fresh on the market.
Ancient art is often the field of such added value between the estimate and the result, but it is always difficult to predict on which lots it will happen. Interencheres and Eric Turquin convinced me that this would be the case for this one.
I invite you to view the video shared by Interencheres :
Of these two artists, Rembrandt is the master, undoubtedly. But Ferdinand Bol, who was ten years younger, is nevertheless an important painter, to the extent that some of his paintings were long attributed to Rembrandt.
A characteristic of Bol artwork is the large size of his biblical scenes inspired by the Old Testament. By consulting Artvalue, we see a dynamic Angel appearing to Elijah, 162 x 178 cm, sold £ 1.36 million inclusive by Sotheby's in London on 5 December 2007.
The expert Eric Turquin, well known in the auctions in France, introduces Eliezer and Rebecca at the Well, in a very interesting video in French on Interencheres.tv. The scene shows the young woman drinking the traveler, in the presence of her servant. The two main characters, attentive to one another, have a great psychological presence.
This large oil on canvas, 185 x 170 cm, dating from 1650 - 1660, will be sold by Versailles Enchères on June 14 at Versailles, in the condition where it was found. Mr. Turquin demonstrates how it has suffered from time. It was resized two hundred years ago, the harmony of colors and lights is tarnished by a centenary varnish that has yellowed, and the seam between the two canvas panels became visible.
In these conditions, the estimate of K € 400 seems reasonable.
POST SALE COMMENT
Here is a very interesting result: € 1.3 million including expenses.
The beauty and authenticity of this painting have prevailed on its condition. This condition may even have been an advantage because the fans of ancient art love the works that are fresh on the market.
Ancient art is often the field of such added value between the estimate and the result, but it is always difficult to predict on which lots it will happen. Interencheres and Eric Turquin convinced me that this would be the case for this one.
I invite you to view the video shared by Interencheres :
1654-1662 Street Scenes by JV
2019 SOLD for $ 1.22M including premium
On January 30 in New York, Sotheby's sells two oils on panel 36 x 28 cm each, lot 30 estimated $ 1.5M and lot 31 estimated $ 1M. They had been listed separately at a Christie's auction in May 1854, attributed at that time to Van der Meer, twelve years before the breakthrough publication by Thoré-Burger revealing Vermeer of Delft behind that name. They remained together and can form a pair.
These two paintings display narrow streets in a medieval atmosphere, cobbled in their middle, animated by rare characters either static or in conversation, in daylight. The theme is rare and deserves attention but the technique is unsophisticated. Both are signed with the monogram JV.
A street scene at dusk, oil on board 39 x 29 cm signed VREL, was sold for £ 840K including premium by Sotheby's on July 4, 2018.
A corpus of about 38 works is currently attributed to Jacobus Vrel. The first name Jacobus appears on one of these works. The name Vrel is the most frequent but appears on only three works. There are other spellings : Frel, Frell, Wrel, Vrelle, Vreelle. Some are dated, between 1654 and 1662.
An anthroponymic study did not bring any information. The artist did not reveal his real name. We are not in the same situation as for Sharaku : Vrel's rough technique could be from a dilettante. The appearance of similar details in various street scenes suggests that all these views are imaginary. The intimate style of the interior scenes perhaps imitates de Hooch.
The initials JV made it confusing with Johannes Vermeer. It is more rewarding to own a Vermeer than to own a Vrel. Thoré-Burger once found a signature of Vrel under an apocryphal signature of Vermeer.
This artist has yet existed. The dendrochronology confirms the dates. There is one and only one document in period, recording three works by Vrel in the inventory of the collection of the Archduke of Austria in 1659.
The monographic exhibition currently being prepared by the Munich Pinakothek, the Fondation Custodia and the Mauritshuis will certainly reopen the debate on the authentic perimeter of the highly enigmatic Jacobus Vrel.
RESULTS INCLUDING PREMIUM :
Lot 30 SOLD for $ 1.22M
Lot 31 SOLD for $ 860K
These two paintings display narrow streets in a medieval atmosphere, cobbled in their middle, animated by rare characters either static or in conversation, in daylight. The theme is rare and deserves attention but the technique is unsophisticated. Both are signed with the monogram JV.
A street scene at dusk, oil on board 39 x 29 cm signed VREL, was sold for £ 840K including premium by Sotheby's on July 4, 2018.
A corpus of about 38 works is currently attributed to Jacobus Vrel. The first name Jacobus appears on one of these works. The name Vrel is the most frequent but appears on only three works. There are other spellings : Frel, Frell, Wrel, Vrelle, Vreelle. Some are dated, between 1654 and 1662.
An anthroponymic study did not bring any information. The artist did not reveal his real name. We are not in the same situation as for Sharaku : Vrel's rough technique could be from a dilettante. The appearance of similar details in various street scenes suggests that all these views are imaginary. The intimate style of the interior scenes perhaps imitates de Hooch.
The initials JV made it confusing with Johannes Vermeer. It is more rewarding to own a Vermeer than to own a Vrel. Thoré-Burger once found a signature of Vrel under an apocryphal signature of Vermeer.
This artist has yet existed. The dendrochronology confirms the dates. There is one and only one document in period, recording three works by Vrel in the inventory of the collection of the Archduke of Austria in 1659.
The monographic exhibition currently being prepared by the Munich Pinakothek, the Fondation Custodia and the Mauritshuis will certainly reopen the debate on the authentic perimeter of the highly enigmatic Jacobus Vrel.
RESULTS INCLUDING PREMIUM :
Lot 30 SOLD for $ 1.22M
Lot 31 SOLD for $ 860K
