Spanish master, ca. 1619. "Holy Family with St. Johnny". Oil on canvas. Relined.

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OLD MASTERS

By Setdart Auction House

Nov 3, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-11-03 08:00:00 2021-11-03 08:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : OLD MASTERS https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/setdart-auction-house/old-masters-7786
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• Lot Description
  Spanish master, ca. 1619. "Holy Family with St. Johnny". Oil on canvas. Relined. Signed with anagram. Twentieth century frame. Measurements: 78 x 63 cm; 101 x 85 cm (frame). We are in front of a canvas starring the Holy Family and San Juanito, in which the placement of the various figures reflects the hierarchy of the characters in this iconography. Thus, we see St. Joseph behind almost hidden in the shadows, while the Virgin Mary and the two children remain in the foreground, directly illuminated. These four figures form a typically Italianate pyramidal scheme, typical of painters such as Raphael Sanzio, with the Lamb of God, St. Johnny - who offers a still life with fruit - and Jesus at the base. The top of the pyramid, therefore, culminates with the figure of the Virgin. Formally, the monumentality of the figures stands out, with perfectly studied rounded anatomies, which responds to our artist's knowledge of the Italian painters of the Renaissance; the arrangement of the characters inside a room, only open to the outside through a window in which a deep landscape can be seen, alludes to the knowledge of the Flemish painting of the same time. Regarding the subject matter, the iconography that introduces the figure of St. John the Baptist in scenes of the Holy Family or Mary with the Child is not only due to the saint's condition as a relative of Jesus, but also has a theological meaning. These images present St. John the Baptist as a prophet who announces the redemptive mission of Christ, and that is why, although he is represented as a child, before his retreat to the desert, he appears with the skin of a lamb or camel and, generally, accompanied by the usual iconographic attributes in his images, which allude to the Passion of Christ. The work has a Renaissance style frame, decorated with candelieri ornamentation in bas-relief.
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