"Follower of Joachim Patinir" is workshop or follower of Herri met de Bles, partially after Bosch

Actéon, from France, sells on 16 November 2019 a "Flemish School, ca. 1600, follower of Joachim Patinir" Paradise on Earth, estimated at 5,000 to 6,000 Euro.

The work is probably based on a circular painting of Paradise, dated ca. 1545, and now in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. This is a work by Herri met de Bles (1510-1555), whose work is often confused with that of Joachim Patinir (1480-1524), and who also incorporated motifs reminiscent of Jeroen Bosch.

Here as well, the central tower closely resembles the tower in Bosch' "Heavenly Paradise" (from the Groeningemuseum in Bruges).

Comparing the three fountain towers (Bosch, Bles, and work for sale) clearly shows the many similarities. The work for sale is even closer to the Bosch original than the Rijksmuseum work, but the remainder of the painting (background, trees, ...) is closer to the work by Bles than to works by Bosch.

It isn't good enough though to be by Bles; so probably the work of a close follower, ca. 1560 or so. The estimate may be a bit steep for the quality and condition, but Boschian works always sell better.

UPDATE: sold for a whopping 78,120 Euro (costs included).

Nice collection at Galerie Moderne (part 2)

Galerie Moderne, from Belgium, sells on 14 November 2017 the small but nice collection of paintings from "Madame D." It doesn't contain any masterpieces, but it has a fair share of interesting, diverse, old paintings, and the catalogue is rather short on descriptions and attributions which gives me some space to deal with these.

Lot 203 is a "16th century Flemish" Saint John the Baptist, estimated at 2,500 to 3,500 Euro. The small (47 by only 18 cm) panel was probably the left wing of a diptych or triptych.

I haven't found other examples of the same position, but the style reminds me of some works by Adriaen Isenbrant. This work is probably from Bruges, ca. 1550, from the circle of Isenbrant, and the estimate seems about right.

The type harks back to examples by Memling and Gerard David, like in the above work by David from the Met.

UPDATE: sold for 2,400 Euro, as expected.

Lot 205 is a landscape "attributed to Lucas van Valckenborch", estimated at 4,000 to 6,000 Euro. The painting, "professionally" attributed with a Dymo label (!),  is probably not by Van Valckenborch (1535-1597), but by a follower of Patinir or Herri met de Bles. The jagged rock is typical for these artists and their followers. It's hard to put a name on it though, perhaps someone like Cornelis van Dalem (ca. 1530-1575)? The whole is evocative and typical for the period, but not really expertly executed.

A comparable Herri met de Bles is this work found at RKD, which was at the Schaeffer Galleries in the 1950s but I have no idea where it is now. It not only has the rock, but also a similar bridge and village (or cloister).

As a work by a follower of Bles, it probably is worth about the estimate: this type of work is always popular.

UPDATE: sold for 7,500 Euro, a bit above the high estimate.