Neapolitan school; circa 1700. "Appearance to Abraham." Oil on canvas.

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Old Masters

By Setdart Auction House

Jun 30, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-06-30 08:30:00 2021-06-30 08:30:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Old Masters https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/setdart-auction-house/old-masters-7134
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• Lot Description
  Neapolitan school; circa 1700. "Appearance to Abraham." Oil on canvas. It has repaints and a frame from a later period. Measures: 100 x 125 cm; 114 x 139 cm (frame). The Old Testament (Genesis 22) tells the story of how God (Yahweh) put Abraham to the test by commanding him to sacrifice his own son. Isaac, Abraham's firstborn, was a much desired child, since Sarah, Abraham's wife could not beget, until she received God's miracle. After the birth of Isaac, Abraham was urged by God to sacrifice his son. Abraham, together with Isaac, walked for three days in search of the place chosen by God, deceiving Isaac who believed that an animal would be sacrificed. At the precise moment when Abraham was about to sacrifice his son, an angel appeared saying: "Do not stretch out your hand against the child, nor do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God" and in that place he gave him a ram that he sacrificed instead of his son. In this scene the precise moment is presented to the act that defines the action of the story. The composition is dominated by the presence of Abraham, leaning on what seems to be the altar where the sacrifice was made, while in the celestial plane we can appreciate the representation of God, approaching his hands towards Abraham, but directing his gaze towards the boy who is placed in the background, together with several animals. On the right a fourth figure completes the scene, probably the angel that stops Abraham. The distinctive sign of the Neapolitan school has always been its strong naturalistic character, its warm color, with reddish and chestnut dominants and the cultivation, together with the altar painting, of a type of realistic painting its best exponent. In Naples the influence of José Ribera was equal or superior to that of Caravaggio. His naturalism, more sensual and material, more vigorous and vehement, less intellectual than that of the latter, becomes permeable over time to Venetian and Flemish influences, enriching color and lightening of technique, especially from 1635. His most faithful disciples are the Fracanzano family, Cesare (1600-51) and Francesco (1612-56), Bartolomeo Bassante (1614-56), Paolo Domenico Finoglia (1590-1645) and some others who later cultivated special genres such as Aniello Falcone (1607-56), Salvatore Rosa (1615-73) or Luca Giordano. However, from the Baroque period onwards, the colors were softened and nuanced without opting for tenebrism, but preserving a great theatricality in the representations.
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