Interesting lots at Bonte

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 7 December some interesting works.

Lot 486 is a "16th century" "portrait of Petrus van Bergh", a msall oil on panel (20 by 22 cm) estimated at 1,500 to 2,000 Euro.

While the sitter is clearly named (and a weapon given as well), it is weird that the portrait shows the Order of the Golden Fleece, but that I can't find any trace of a "Van Bergh" who was a member of that highly selective order in those years.

Looking further reveals that this painting is a copy after the Master of the Magdalen Legend (as found through RKD), a work last seen in 1931 (and then sold as "Barend van Orley") which shows an unknown, unnamed member of the Order. The painting for sale is not only clearly inferior, it also is smaller than the original one, so it isn't the same work in a badly overpainted version. Whether cleaning it will remove more than just the incorrect name, and perhaps reveal a stronger copy of the original, remains to be seen. But it is a good reminder that while inscriptions may be a good pointer, they can also be very misleading.

Lot 488 is a "17th century" Saint Peter, estimated at 1,200 to 1,800 Euro.

The work seems closely related to or inspired by a Saint Peter by (the Workshop of) Rubens, in the National Gallery of Art in Washington. Same keys, same dress, similar head, as if someone else was drawing the same model at the same time but from a different angle. Probably just a coincidence, but still quite a strong one. Perhaps a copy after an unknown (to me that is) Rubens?

Lot 497 is a  "17th or 18th century" Holy Family with angels, estimated at 3,000 to 5,000 Euro.

It seems to be made by a follower of Pieter van Avont and Abraham Govaerts, comparable to (but of lesser quality than) one that was sold at Lempertz in 2010 for 10,800 Euro.

Lot 529, a "Flemish, 16th century" rest on the flight to Egypt, is estimated at 5,000 to 8,000 Euro.

It is from the workshop or a close follower of the Master of the Parrot, and can be compared (though reversed) to one sold at Christie's this year, which fetched £13,750 (but was better than the one for sale here) and another from Christie's sold in 2005, which went for £38,400 (note the eponymous parrot and the fruit bowl in this example).

Lot 531 is a "16th century" Adoration of the Magi, estimated at 2,000 to 4,000 Euro. It has had a quite fascinating restoration. At first I thought there was some digital error in the image, but it turns out to be a split in the painting which hasn't been completely closed, and which has some white bands behind it. Almost like a piece of modern art!

Unidentified copies at Carlo Bonte

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells some at first sight interesting works in their auction on 27 March 2019. However, they turn out to be copies of better works, which is a pity.

Lot 979 is a Lamentation, described as "Southern Netherlands, 17th century, no visible signature", and estimated at 1,000 to 1,500 Euro. It is a rather dull copy of a Van Dyck from the Royal Museum of Antwerp.

Lot 996 is a Susanna and the Elders, with a description of "Southern Netherlands, 16th century", and an estimate of 2,000 to 3,000 Euro. It is based on a ca. 1600 engraving by Anthnie Wierix after a design by Maerten de Vos. As such, the estimate seems to high.

One other lot that caught my eye is 981, a series of 4 huge paintings (about 2 by 3 metres each!) by Flori Van Acker (Bruges, 1858-1940), neo-romantic painter and director of the Bruges Academy. The condition isn't brilliant, and they are not the best paintings ever, but these four together, some 20 square metres of painting by a known artist, is estimated at 500 to 1,000 Euro only! I guess in this case their size may actually be a disadvantage, as they are too big for most homes, and they seem to be unframed which would add a serious cost to get them presentable. The subject matter, missionary work, also isn't fashionable.

Still, even a work like the one above, in it's typical provincial Art Nouveau advertising poster style (Neogothic with a flourish), should easily fetch the estimate on its own, as it is a striking image, done with great skill. It's hard to predict if this kind of painting will ever get fashionable again, but it seems unimaginable that they may get even less in favour than they are now.

"Late 16th c. Adoration" is copy after Raphaël

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 11 December 2018 a "Posibly French late 16th century" Adoration of the Shepherds, estimated at 1,000 to 1,500 Euro.

At first I thought it maight be the work of Jost de Laval, a probably Flemish painter who worked a long time, until his death in 1578, in Lübeck, but in the 1550s worked in Bruges (where the auction is). Certainly that second one (found through RKD) has many of the same elements (from the depiction of God over the use of a wooden, derelict construction inside a ruinous old temple, to the arrival of the shepherd with a reluctant dog, left in the work for sale and right in the RKD one), and a similar awkward style.

But a much closer match was another work I found at RKD, a "Follower of Lambert Lombard" from the Lindenau Museum in Altenburg, and from a similar date as the Laval ones (which would date this work somewhat earlier than the auction house thinks). The works clearly share the same origin, even though the background on the right is totally different.

It turns out that both works are copies after Raphael, through an engraving published by Hieronymus Cock in 1563 (found at the Rijksmuseum). The work for sale is a much more faithful reproduction of the engraving than the Lombard version.

The work probably is only worth the estimate, but it is a good enough old Flemish copy of a Raphael to be interesting.

"Late 17th century" is copy after lost Carracci

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 11 December 2018 a "Late 17th century" portrait of Christ, estimated at 1,500 to 2,500 Euro.

It is a fairly good copy after Annibale Carracci, his now lost (presumably destroyed in WWII) head of Christ from the Dresden Museum. It probably isn't worth much more than the estimate, but copies after lost works are always interesting, and linking such an anonymous work with obvious quality to a known work is what this blog often is about, so... The work for sale has the same dimensions as the original, and probably the same colours, but it is less convincing (which may be improved by cleaning it), and painted on canvas instead of on copper, as the original was.

"16th c." painting is copy after Gillis van Coninxloo

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 26 September 2018 a "16th c." Moses found by the daughter of the pharaoh, a rather large work (89 by 138 cm) estimated at 1,000 to 1,500 Euro.

The work is a rather early depiction of this story, and in the landscape and colouring has elements of 16th century Flemish works. But the execution is not up to par with the composition, a sure-tell sign of a copy.

The original (which seems to be lost?) was made by Gillis van Coninxloo (1544-1607), a painter from Antwerp (though his family lived close to Brussels), active in the circle of Pieter Coecke and the Brueghels; he is especially important as a landscape painter, the leader of the generation after Patinir and Herri met de Bles.

This work was widely known through the large engraving made by Nicolaes de Bruyn in 1601 (copy from the Rijksmuseum).

A much better painted version was sold at Christie's in 2013 for £11,875. It was attributed to Gillis Van Coninxloo III, son of the original creator (who is usually indicated without the "II" after his name), and may well have been made directly after the original painting instead of after the engraving.

The work for sale is probably not worth more than the estimate, certainly when one considers that it is likely early 17th century, and not a 16th century work. But for 1,000 Euro you get a nice enough version of a work by a lesser known but important painter who I hadn't tackled yet.

A pair of interesting 17th century portraits from Bruges

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 13 June 2018 two "17th century, unsigned" portraits, estimated at 2,000 to 3,000 Euro.

The portraits are rather good, and the sitters are identified by the text on the reverse of the paintings, which seems plausible in this case (too often the text on the back promises more than the front can deliver).

The man is Abraham van Susteren, brother to Hendrik, the Bishop of Bruges. He died in 1699. His wife, Joanna Margarita de Berault de Villetart was a noble lady from a minor house who lived until 1733. From the biography of the bishop of Bruges, we learn that his parents were married in 1657, placing this portrait in the 1680s at the earliest, and 1699 at the latest of course.

However, according to the Bossche Encyclopedia (the online encyclopedia of 's Hertogenbosch, famous as the city of Hieronymus Bosch, and the origin of the Van Susteren family), Abraham was the uncle of Hendrik, the son of his elder brother Gisberto. According to this source, Abraham was already born in 1628, and married Anna de Berault de Villeterre in 1667. This would date his (and presumably her) portrait anywhere between 1667 and 1699, but he doesn't look like a man of 60 years or older, so it presumably dates to the late 1660s or to the 1670s, and may well have been painted at the time of the engagement or marriage.

More information about Abraham and Joanna Margarita can be found in an old article in "De Biekorf" from 1969, which confirms the Bossche Encyclopedia information. It adds that he came to Bruges ca. 1665, that the family of Marguerite (aka Anne or Joanna Margarita) de Berault de Villeterre objected to her marrying a commoner (even though he was a rich merchant), that his maternal grandfather died at the famous battle of Leckerbeetje (subject of many paintings by Sebastian Vrancx and others).

I haven't been able to find any information about this portrait of Van Susteren, but while searching I found out that he was responsible for the shipping of Flemish paintings to Spain, where one or two of his sons lived as representatives of his company. He worked together with Antwerp art dealer Matthijs Musson (1598-1675).

For these portraits, I looked at portrait painters active in Bruges in 1667 or a bit later. The only candidates I find from this period who has the skill displayed in these works (skills which would have been common in Antwerp or in some parts of the Northern Netherlands, but not in every city or town) were Jacob Van Oost (1603-1671) and Jacob Van Oost II (1639-1713), father and son, and Jan Baptist Herregouts (1646-1721), who only moved to Bruges in 1677 and became a Master there in 1684, and Hendrik Herregouts, his brother.

Jacob Van Oost the Elder seems a better painter than what we have here (probably the best painter in Bruges in this period, together with the more highly specialized cityscape painter Jan Baptist van Meunincxhove, who had a nice work for sale at Vanderkindere  on 29 May). The two Herregouts are probably just too late to be candidates for these works, and their style doesn't really match the more fleshy, baroque style of the portraits for sale.

Which leaves us with Jacob Van Oost the Younger. While the portrait of a man, from the Boston Museum, seems at first sight better than the one for sale, it has on closer inspection the same slightly featureless face. 

And the Boston work is the best one I could find, most paintings are less richly detailed and closer to the portraits for sale. The RKD lists for example a portrait sold in 1990 in Brussels, a work sold by Hargesheimer in 2016, and one sold at Hampel in 2011.

 

There are also some portraits of women we can compare with. These include one sold at Hagels in 1994, and a very nice portrait offered in 1984 by Chaucer Fine Arts.

Whether the two portraits really are by Jacob Van Oost II is hard to decide, his known work varies rather wildly in quality. But for anyone interested in more provincial painting in 17th century Flanders for a reasonable price, these two offer a good opportunity.

17th century "Martyrdom of a saint" is related to Simon de Vos and Frans Francken

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 13 June 2018 a "17th century, unsigned" Martyrdom of a saint, estimated at 600 to 800 Euro.

This rather lage (55 by 72 cm) oil on copper is probably a depiction of the beheading of Saint Paul, and seems to be the work of Simon de Vos or someone from his circle. His depiction of the same story, now in the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp, shows many similarities, especially in the way the executioner is shown. The white horse with yellow decoration is also a typical De Vos element.

While the composition reminds me most of Simn de Vos, the style of painting is closer to the Francken family. The above poor picture shows a martyrdom of Saint Catherine which is attributed to Frans Francken II, and where the position of the executioner and the horse are similar to the work for sale (although the genral posture is closer to the Simon de Vos actually, but the clothing is more like the Bonte work).

Even as an anonymous Flemish work, this one should fetch 2,000 to 3,000 Euro.

"Style of Roelandt Savery" is after Peeter Boel (inspired by Jan Fyt)

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 27 September 2017 an "Unsigned, 17th century, style of Roeland Savery" bird fight ("Allegory of fleeting time", they call it), estimated at 3,000 to 5,000 Euro.

Works attributed to Joannes Fyt and  Jan van Kessel I use identical elements, so perhaps the artist must be searched in either camp.

Joannes or Jan Fyt clearly is a better painter than the artist at work here. The RKD lists this large painting from the Staatsfalerie in Oberschlossheim, Munich. The heron and falcon are nearly identical (with the heron reversed obviously), but not completely the same.

Jan van Kessel I has more variation in the quality of his works (and also works by his family Jan van Kessel II and Ferdinand van Kessel), making him a more obvious candidate for this painting, if one doesn't like to have an anonymous work from the "circle of". This one again comes from the RKD and is a much smaller work. It was sold at Christie's in 1998. Van Kessel often copied elements from others, including Fyt, and in fact this work is listed by the RKD as being partially based on a work by Fyt as well; they don't mention that the top half, with the heron is also based on Fyt though!

The actual exact same image as in the painting here can be found in an engraving by Peeter Boel from ca. 1657, which I found at the Rijksmuseum (the RKD is brilliant for paintings and good for drawings: the Rijksmuseum is the best public source for Flemish and Dutch engravings though, and provides free high-quality images). Here the wings and feet of the heron and the tail of the falcon are identical to the painting.

The estimate of the work for sale seems about right, it is not an original by a known master but it is well-painted and of considerable size, and hunting scenes or bird scenes are still fairly popular.

UPDATE: not sold, again for sale at Carlo Bonte on 13 December 2017 with a lowered estimate of 2,000 to 3,000 Euro.

UPDATE 2: not sold, now at Rops on 28 January 2018 with same description but higher estimate of 4,000 to 6,000 Euro! Seems rather optimistic...

UPDATE 3: Sold for 4,300 Euro, bizarre... Buyer could have had it for half the price only one month ago!

16th c. "Adoration of the Shepherds": Italian or Flemish?

Carlo Bonte, from Belgium, sells on 27 September 2017 a "16th century" Adoration of the Shepherds, estimated at 3,000 to 5,000 Euro.


I couldn't find an exact match for the composition so far, even though it reminds me of works by Jacopo Bassano. But in general the work looks like a Flemish interpretation of Italian examples.

The shepherd on the far left, for example, can also be found on Italian works, e.g. here from an "Italy, mid 16th century" anonymous work sold at La Suite Subastas.

On the Flemish side, it reminds me more in general of the work of e.g. Marten de Vos, like in the above engraving.

But like I said, I couldn't find a more closely related painting or engraving, so while it seems likely that this painting isn't an original composition but a copy of one or more older works (which would also explain the difference in quality between some parts of the work), I can not exactly pinpoint a time or place of origin.

The estimate seems about right though, as it is a pleasing work with enough quality to entice bidders.

UPDATE 19/09/2017: strangely enough, I found the figure of the "Italian" painting again, but now on an engraving after Maerten de Vos (by Sadeler), who I had already linked to the composition above! The Rijksmuseum led me to this engraving from ca. 1582. So while this doesn't really help us for the current painting, at least we can change the "Italian" painting from La Suite Subastas to "After Marten de Vos"...

UPDATE 20/09/2017: on Twitter,  AuctionRadar kindly showed another engraving after Maerten de Vos which contained other figures identical or very close to ones in this painting. The bowing shepherd holding his hat, some of the angels, and the figure of Joseph clearly are derived from this engraving (or from the painting at the origin of it). While I still haven't found all elements from the painting, it seems obvious that it should be considered the work of a Follower of Maerten de Vos.