ARTISTS
Important Old Master Paintings & Sculpture at Sotheby鈥檚
Sotheby鈥檚 27 January 2011 auction of Important Old Master Paintings & Sculpture in New York will feature significant works by artists from across Europe
黑料不打烊
06 Jan, 2011
6 January 2011 听鈥� Sotheby鈥檚 27 January 2011 auction of Important Old Master Paintings & Sculpture in New York will feature significant works by artists from across Europe. The morning session of Important Old Master Paintings is led by Titian鈥檚 monumental 听Sacra Conversazione, a rare work by the artist still in private hands (pictured left, est. $15/20 million*). The afternoon session of Old Master Paintings and Sculpture is led by An Italian Marble Relief Portrait of Cosimo I de 鈥楳edici 听by 听Baccio Bandinelli, executed just prior to the future听Grand Duke鈥檚 rise to power in 1537. The sale will be on exhibition in Sotheby鈥檚 York Avenue galleries beginning 22 January, alongside the full calendar of Old Masters Week auctions**.听
Important Old Master Paintings 鈥� 10am听
The morning session of Important Old Master Paintings is led by A Sacra Conversazione: The Madonna and Child with Saints Luke and Catherine of Alexandria by the Renaissance master Titian. The work is one of only a handful of multi-figured compositions by the 16th-century artist that remain in private hands, and is the most important to appear at auction since 1991. The painting was shown in public for the first time in more than 30 years at Sotheby鈥檚 New York this past October, and has since been on exhibition at Sotheby鈥檚 galleries in Paris, 听Amsterdam and London. 听
Painted circa 1560, Sacra Conversazione is a mature work executed by Titian at the height of his artistic abilities. He had established his reputation as the leading artist of his time, and his profound use of color and innovative 听technique have since made him one of the most influential figures in the history of Western art. While historically referred to as 鈥楾he Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine鈥�, the present canvas鈥檚 subject lies within the more traditional representation of a 鈥榮acra conversazione鈥欌�揳 鈥榟oly conversation鈥� between the Madonna and Child and saints. The main focus of the composition is the tender representation of the Madonna and Child as they engage Saint Catherine, and in particular the gesture between the female saint and the Christ Child.听
Another highlight of the morning session from an Italian artist is The Virgin and听Child by a Window: 鈥淢adonna of the Cherries鈥� by Leonardo da Vinci鈥檚 most听faithful and productive interpreter in Lombardy: Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli, nicknamed Giampietrino (est. $700/900,000). Madonna of the Cherries represents one of the artist鈥檚 finest works, and certainly one of the best left in private hands. The painting is essential in understanding both Giampietrino鈥檚 career and his master Leonardo鈥檚 time in Milan, whose presence fundamentally transformed 16th century Lombard painting.
Portrait of a Lady, Three-Quarter Length, in a Green Velvet and Orange听Dress and a Pearl-Embroidered Black Hat is an elegant portrait characteristic of听the style Lucas Cranach the Younger perfected during his years in Wittenberg听studying with his father (est. $3/4 million). The sitter is very clearly from the aristocracy, and Cranach takes great pains to describe her costume鈥檚 splendid variety听of color and texture. From the late 1940s to the early 1960s, Pablo Picasso turned听to similar portraiture by Cranach in developing a series of linoleum cuts, and indeed听the contemporary aspect of the present painting is remarkable.
The January sale is highlighted by an expressive modello by Sir Peter Paul Rubens听with a notable history. The Martyrdom of Saint Paul (est. $1.5/2 million) is the only known, complete study for Rubens鈥檚 large altarpiece painted for the High Altar of the Church of the Augustinian Priory of Rood Klooster near Brussels, of which St. Paul was the patron saint. The actual altarpiece was destroyed during the French bombardment of Brussels in 1695, leaving the present sketch as the primary surviving visual record of its composition. The beautiful work condenses the story of Paul鈥檚 martyrdom into a single dramatic and emotional moment, with Paul kneeling at the center of the composition while an executioner holds him roughly by the collar and the Roman woman Plautilla wraps a blindfold around his eyes.
Brothers Pieter Breughel the Younger and Jan Breughel the Elder lead the Flemish Renaissance works on offer in the January sale. Pieter Breughel鈥檚 听Return from the Kermesse is one of the finest known versions of this composition, which was very popular during his lifetime and appears to have been entirely designed by the artist (pictured left, est. $2/3 million). The scene depicts a merry听procession of villagers returning from a kermesse, still in the throes of revelry. Jan Breughel the Elder鈥檚 Panoramic Landscape with a Covered Wagon and Travelers on a Highway is a quintessential example of the artist鈥檚 mature landscapes (est. $1/1.5 million). The work is dated 1612, a time when he was enjoying great success with the various courts of Europe, including Arhdukes Albert and Isabella, the Habsburg regents of the Netherlands, and Emperor Rudolph II and King Sigismund II of Poland.
Dutch Golden Age artist Gerrit Dou 听entered Rembrandt鈥檚 studio in 1628,听originally having been trained as a glass engraver. An Elderly Woman, Seated by a Window at her Spinning Wheel, Eating Porridge is an early painting by听the artist, and he continued to use its basic compositional form throughout the听remainder of his career (est. $2/3 million). Little-seen until the Dutch Genre听Painting exhibition of 1984 that traveled to Philadelphia, Berlin and London,听this picture was formerly thought to be a copy after a painting in Scherwin. That听picture is now widely acknowledged to be a replica or copy of the work currently听on offer.听
Also from the Dutch Golden Age is Willem van der Vliet鈥檚 A Scholar in his Study with Figures with Masks, possibly an Allegory 听(est. $1.2/1.8 million), which has been the subject 听of enormous interest since its appearance on the market in 1983. One of only six known history paintings by van der Vliet, the work continues to puzzle scholars and collectors in regards to its subject. Various explanations have been offered鈥揳 playwright surrounded by his characters; a philosopher rejecting the sexual advances of earthly love鈥揵ut to this day none are totally satisfactory. A grand and impressive picture, it stands as one of the most unique images of Dutch 17th-century art.
Luis Mel茅ndez鈥檚 听Still Life with Tomatoes, a Bowl of Aubergines and Onions leads the Spanish paintings in the January auction (pictured left, est. $1.5/2 million). With its glowing-red tomatoes and just-ripening aubergines artfully arranged on a sunlit table, the painting is characteristic of the work that made Mel茅ndez the greatest Spanish still life painter of the 18th century. Romantic landscape painter Joseph Mallord William Tuner R.A.鈥檚 Mountain Landscape, Bonneville, Savoy is a highlight of the works on offer by British artists ($1.2/1.8 million). Purchased by Turner鈥檚 most devoted patron and friend Walter Fawkes, this landscape marks a turning point in the young painter鈥檚 career. The canvas illustrates his ability to liberate his work from a reliance on topographical imitation, instead edging toward a new manner of representation where value is based on color and a poetic sensibility.
Works from prominent foundations and institutions also highlight the 听sale. Property of the Beaverbrook Foundation in New Brunswick, 听Canada, formerly in the collection of press baron, business tycoon and politician Lord Beaverbrook, is led by Claude-Joseph Vernet鈥檚 A Grand View of the Sea Shore Enriched with Buildings, Shipping and Figures (est. $1.5/2 million). William Petty, 2nd听Earl of 听Shelburne, 听later 1st听Marquess of Lansdowne, who was already a notable collector, commissioned a pair of grand 听views from Vernet in 1774 for a substantial sum. The size was to be comparable to the Ports of France, Vernet鈥檚听most important paintings, though the artist had not attempted a picture on the same scale since. The work, which听presents a serene seascape at sunset, is signed and dated 1776, and was later in the collection of Robert, Earl听Grosvenor, and then descended to the Dukes of Westminster until 1959.
Works sold by the J. Paul Getty Museum to benefit future painting acquisitions are highlighted by The Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels and Flanked by Saint Bridget and the Archangel Michael,erroneously known as 鈥淭he Poggibonsi Triptych鈥� (pictured left, est. $200/300,000). The authorship of this arresting triptych has in the past been ascribed to numerous artists, but the work has most convincingly been attributed to the as-yet-unidentified Master of Pratovecchio, who worked in and around Florence in the mid-15th century. Another highlight of the Getty works is Portrait of Laura Pisani by Gabriele Cappellini, called Calzolareto (est. $150/200,000). While the precise identity of the young woman in the painting has been debated by scholars, she appears to be a member of the large and powerful Pisani family, which had branches in Italian cities including Ferrara and Venice, and possibly a poet.
Property of the Cleveland Museum of Art, also being sold to benefit future acquisitions, is led by the pair of paintings 听Horatius Cocles Defending Rome against the Etruscans; the Wounded Horatius Cocles Swimming the Tiber (the former pictured right, est. $200/300,000). The grand and imposing pair is attributed to a Follower of Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, possibly The Master of Jerusalem Liberated, and depicts the exploits of the Roman hero Horatius Cocles. Another highlight of the works on offer from the Cleveland Museum of Art is Philips Wouwerman鈥檚 听Dune Landscape with Figures (est. $100/150,000). The prolific artist produced over one thousand paintings in his lifetime, despite dying at the relatively young age of 48. In the present work, the horses and figures seem secondary to the beautiful, serene dune landscape in which they travel.
Old Master Paintings and Sculpture 鈥� 2pm听
The robust afternoon session spans medieval enamels and sculptures to neoclassical bronzes, and features a large group of Renaissance and Baroque bronzes from the Abbott Guggenheim collection, among other private collections. Leading the works of art on offer is An Italian Marble Relief Portrait of Cosimo听I de 鈥楳edici, attributed to Baccio Bandinelli, 听circa 1537 (est. $300/500,000). This portrait of the young Cosimo I de 鈥楳edici was apparently executed when the future Grand Duke of Florence was 17 years old, just prior to his rise to power in 1537. While the combination of simple clothing and the lack of a beard suggest his age, the 6portrait nonetheless captures the subject鈥檚 authority and commanding presence. Baccio Bandinelli was a faithful servant to Cosimo throughout his career, essentially becoming his official court sculptor. 听
Other marble works include An Italian Marble Relief of the Madonna and Child by Domenico Rosselli, 听circa 1480 (pictured right, est. $200/300,000). The serene and charming relief appears to be the marble from which the polychrome听stucco relief of the same composition in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London was made. An Italian Marble Bust of Christ the Redeemer Depicted as Zeus, attributed to Giovanni Angelo Montorsoli, mid-16th century derives听from the ancient sculptures of Zeus or 听Zeus-Serapis that the artist would have encountered during his sojourn in Rome (est. $120/180,000). Montorsoli worked for Michelangelo on some of the master鈥檚 most important sculptural commissions, including the Medici chapel in Florence and the Medici tomb in San Lorenzo.听
Leading the bronze sculpture on offer is A Rare French Bronze Bust of Gilbert De Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, by Pierre-Jean David d鈥橝ngers, possibly cast by Charles Crozatier, dated 1829, Paris (pictured left, est. $200/300,000). This previously unpublished bust, showing General Lafeyette as an ancient philosopher en herm猫s, is the only known full-sized bronze version of the portrait made by David d鈥橝ngers in 1828-29. The work is a masterpiece of portraiture, capturing not only the听physical likeness of the subject, but also his moral character. Another highlight of the sale is A Life-Size South German Gilt and Painted Lindenwood Group of the Madonna and Child, from the Circle of Hans Multscher, circa 1480 (est. $120/180,000). The sculpture was probably at the center of an altar or shrine, common in Southern Germany and Austria in the late Gothic period.听
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The afternoon sale also features 听The Stowe Cistern: A Massive George I Silver Two-Handled Wine Cistern, Jacob Margas,听London, 1714 (est. $1/2 million). Cisterns, enormous reserves of precious metal formed into objects of display and ostensible use, represent the height of conspicuous consumption in the late Baroque period. The imposing English cistern on offer in January is one of only eight known to have survived from the reign of George I. This baroque masterpiece was created by Jacob Margas, one of the Royal goldsmiths, and later formed part of the collections of the Dukes of Buckingham at Stowe.
** Old Masters Week 2011 鈥� Calendar of Sales听
Property from the Collection of Charles Ryskamp sold for the Primary Benefit of Princeton University听
25 January听
Old Master Drawings听
26 January听
Important Old Master & 19th Century Paintings from the Collection of J. E. Safra听
26 January 鈥� 6:30pm听
Important Old Master Paintings & Sculpture听
27 January听
Old Master & 19th Century European Art听
28 January
