"Circle of Jan Brueghel II" is circle of Ferdinand van Kessel and Peter Casteels

Kendzia, from Hamburg, Germany, sells on 24 March 2017 a "Circle of Jan Brueghel II" Allegorical Scene, estimated at 9,000 Euro.

It is an Allegory of Taste, and while Jan Brueghel has painted similar scenes, this one seems particularly close to the works of Frans Wouters (1612-1659) (example was for sale for 50,000 Euro but remained unsold). The work offered here is a large oil on copper (55 by 72 cm), typical (though not exclusive) for the region and painters around Jan Brueghel.

The Wouters has also been copied by Jan Van Kessel the Elder (1626-1679).

The work for sale clearly is based on a reversal of motifs by Wouters, even though it isn't an exact copy.
 

The actual  origin of this painting, based on Wouters, was a work by Ferdinand van Kessel and Peter Casteels though (found via RKD, shown topmost, work for sale below it for easy comparison). It was for sale at Koller in 2008 (80,000 Swiss Francs) and 2009 (60,000 Swiss Francs), but both times remained unsold. The work for sale now is in worse condition, but even so it looks to me like a less well executed work, especially the central female figure (Venus? A well-clothed Venus in that case). It is not a real copy, enough details are different, but it obviously is the same composition.

The estimate seems a bit too high taking these things into consideration, but it still is an attractive work which is in dire need of cleanup and perhaps restoration (and if you are really lucky, it has been partially overpainted and you find an original Kessel / Casteels anyway!)

For "Campi", read " Ciampi"

Koller West, from Switzerland, sells on 29 March 2017 a "signed F. Campi" farm interior, estimated at 1,400 to 2,300 Euro.

The actual signature and artist is F. Ciampi, a good purely sentimental Romantic artist whose works are quite rare. Sotheby's Amsterdam sold one similar but smaller work in 2008 with an estimate of 4,000 to 6,000 Euro, or nearly three times the current estimate, making this one, which is perhaps slightly less charming and slightly less precise painted, quite cheap.

I was unable to find any information whatsoever on this artist otherwise, not even his first name. Perhaps it simply was the pseudonym for another artist who wanted to hide either how many paintings he produced (avoiding to flood the market) or who didn't want it to be known that next to his "serious" works he also produced this more "commercial" work to make a living. Both weren't unusual in the 19th century, but may make it hard to ever find out who painted these.

Painting I highlighted now at TEFAF!

Weiss Gallery, an important Old Masters Dealer, is present at the major TEFAF art fair in Maastricht. And what do I spot when they Tweet about it but a painting I highlighted nearly exactly a year ago as being a good bargain, and which ended up being one of the biggest sleepers I had posted about ever?

It's nice to see what happens to paintings you care about after the initial auction has passed. This one ideally should go to a major Belgian museum, but they most likely lack the necessary funds for it.

"Venetian, 18th century" is (follower of?) Nicola Grassi

Neumeister, from Germany, sells on 29 March 2017 a "Venetian, 18th century" Rachel and Jacob at the Well, estimated at 5,000 to 6,000 Euro.

It is a work in the style of and possibly by Nicola (or Nicolo) Grassi (1682-1748), a Venetian artist who also worked in Bavaria around 1725. As Neumeister is located in Munich, the capital of Bavaria, it becomes even more likely that this is a work by him.

Rachel and the Well was one of the most popular topics of Grassi. Looking at e.g. FonzazioneZeri, an Italian art database, they list some 60 works by or associated with Grassi, incuding the following related works: an Eliezer, a Jacob, another Eliezer (pictured), an unclear sketch, yet another Eliezer, a very nice Rebecca (also pictured). Recurring elements include the sculpted base of the well, the white dress with blue or black shirt of Rebecca / Rachel, the background girl with the vase on her head, and elements like the sheep and the background. The main girl is also always clearly of the same type and posture, even though the hairdo varies.

Sotheby's sold in 2015 a Rachel and Jacob at the Well, estimated at $15,000 but unsold. This one is probably the closest to the one for sale. All these works have Rachel with the same clothes and the same or similar hair and figure, this one adds Jacob, who also has the same clothes and colour scheme. The well is also comparable (down to the square stone for the round well), as are the two women close to the well, the sheep, and the girl with the amphora on her head in the right background.

In 2006 Christie's sold a comparable work (a different scene from the same story) for £20,000.

The painting for sale is weaker in execution though than most certain Grassi works, both in the force the figures radiate and in the colouring. Comparing the Sotheby's one with the Zeri one above, such differences seem to be normal for Grassi though, and perhaps his German paintings cater to a somewhat different taste? I don't know enough about Grassi to attribute this one definitely to him, but it is clearly by at least a close follower. As an anonymous work, it should be worth the estimate: if it really is a Grassi, it is probably worth closer to 15,000 Euro.

"17th century painter" is copy after Balthasar van den Bossche

Von Zengen, from Germany, sells on 18 March 2017 a "17th century painter" Visit from a polish King to the workshop of sculptor Giambologna, estimated at 1,200 Euro.

It is a copy after a 1701 painting by Balthasar van den Bossche (1681-1715 so not 17th century), and the original says nothing about either Poland or Giambologna; but the clothes of the inspecting buyer indicate Eastern Europe, and many of these works contain copies of works by Giambologna. Van den Bossche was rather prolific and popular, and his works were often copied. The copy has the same dimensions as the original.

It wasn't very hard to guess the original artist, as such sculptor workshops are typical for him; but it was made even easier because the auction house showed a label with the title of the work (which indeed references a Polish prince), which had a handwritten note "B. vd Bosch"...

While Van den Bossche is far from the best painter, the work for sale is on closer inspection clearly inferior. It should struggle to reach 1,000 Euro. For a good Van den Bossche you'll need to pay 3,000 to 5,000 Euro, but the difference quality is quite striking.

UPDATE: the description has been changed on 10 March to "Attributed to Balthasar van den Bossche".

Flemish School is (after) Hans Jordaens III

Horta, from Belgium, sells on 20 March 2017 a "Flemish School, 17th Century" Passage of the Red Sea, a panel of 76 by 109 cm estimated at 750 to 1,000 Euro.

Another version of the same work, with nearly identical dimensions, is listed at the RKD as (after?) Hans Jordaens III (1595-1643), from a church in Zutphen, the Netherlands.

Other versions of the same image have appeared on the art market a few times recently, but I frustratingly only have some small images, and no knowledge of where these were offered or for how much. Wildly differing formats, the third one seems to be a fragment only though, but probably otherwise the best (or the best conserved) of the lot. Strangely enough that one is only attributed to "Circle of Hans Jordaens III"...

The one for sale needs a good cleaning, and certainly isn't the best version of the work: but at the current estimate it is very cheap, and it should fetch 2,000 to 3,000 Euro.

UPDATE: sold for only 800 Euro.

Bruges school, ca. 1550: Pieter Pourbus?

Brussels Art Auctions, from Belgium obviously, sells on 14 March 2017 a "Bruges School, ca. 1550" portrait of a lady, estimated at 7,000 to 10,000 Euro.

It is a very fine portrait, much better than most of these "School of" works, and I wonder if it isn't by the master of the Bruges Portrait school of the time, Pieter Pourbus the Elder.

While the hands and arms are perhaps not of the finest quality (though still very good, and perhaps overpainted somewhat in the past?), the head is very accurate and compelling. Very few painters from Bruges from the period would have been able to produce such a realistic, convincing work.

Pieter Pourbus (1523-1584) is the first of the Pourbus family to become famous; descendants include Frans Pourbus the Elder and the Younger, and Pieter the Younger. He was  Dutch but worked almost whole his life in Bruges. The paintings which are attributed to him are of varying quality, but some of the better ones are closely related to the composition we have here.

A very good portrait was sold by Christie's in 2006 for $132,000.

But on the other hand we also have much more schematised works like the portrait of Jacquemyne Buuck from the Groeningemuseum.

Benson, portrait of Anne Stafford

Pourbus, Portrait of a Lady, Metropolitan Museum

The only other painter from the period and region who in my opinion was capable of such good portraits was Ambrosius Benson, but the work for sale more closely resembles Pourbus in my opinion.


But whoever painted it, 7,000 Euro seems cheap to me and it should be worth closer to 20,000 Euro, also considering its relatively large size of 95 by 68 cm (large for the type of painting that is).

UPDATE: note how a very similar type of bonnet can be seen in a ca. 1550 small Pieter Pourbus painting from the National Trust building "Ascott".