Beauty has proven to be most sustainable.
The 'live in an empty room' sale of Old Master paintings, Works of Art and 19th. Century Masters will be held on
Tuesday 5 May at 2pm cet: lots 1 – 165
Wednesday 6 May at 2pm cet: lots 180 – 356
Thursday 7 May at 2pm cet: lots 401 – 542
In the meantime enjoy all things of beauty, enjoy the time given, but far and by most, stay in, keep safe and strong.
How you can bid on this Stay-in auction can be found here.
A formerly 'Anonymous 17th. Century Master' happens to be a to Sebastian Vrancx & Henry Van Baelen painting (lot 131). In this beautifully preserved painting we see Venus rushing towards her dying lover, Adonis. Ovid writes in his Metamorphoses how the goddess begged the youthful hunter to stay safely at her side, but pride convinced him to chase a dangerous wild boar who succeeds in wounding his attacker to death.
This colourful panel painting is presumably the result of an interesting collaboration between two 17th century, Antwerp artists. The human figures can be attributed to Hendrick van Balen. He was a successful cabinet painter who was specialized in the painting of figures. His style is rather similar to Frans Francken the Youngers’ style, who was also a cabinetpainter. Yet Venuses porcelain skin, her voluminous hair and her colourfull dress are more typical for Van Balen.
The dogs and the landscape in the background seem to be the brushwork Sebastiaan Vrancx. He is known for his battle scenes depicting robbers or muting soldiers sacking villages.
Yet here, they show us something differently. By depicting this mythological scene, they display their knowledge of classical literature making an intellectual statement.
Also, an important still life by the rather unknown artist Otto Merseus van Schrieck (c. 1619/20–1678) will be presented for sale. Van Schrieck has a particular, rather sinister approach towards the genre of the flower painting. He is specialized in the depiction of plants and creatures that dwell in the dark of the forest floor. This canvas depicts a poisonous viper and a sand lizard. They are approaching each other aggressively while five butterflies flutter above their heads. Look at the magnificent handling of a soft chiaroscuro: a dim light catches the spikes of the thistle leaves and reflects on the wings of the butterflies and the rough reptile skin. Did you know that in his younger years, Otto Van Schrieck was nicknamed ‘the snuffler’? He earned that name because he was constantly sniffling around on the country side searching for rare plants and animals. More exciting is the testimony of his wife after his death saying he secretly breaded reptiles in a shed behind his house in Amsterdam.
Through his art, you can detect his fascination for these rather unattractive flora and fauna which is unique in the 17th-century which was marked by the tulip madness. This makes him an extraordinary artist amongst the flower painters of the Dutch Golden Age.
Next to these two paintings we'll be presenting in this Old Masters Sale a copy of the Entombment by Antoon Van Dijck (est.:€ 5000/6000) next to a work by Govert Camphuysen (1623/24-1672), who's most famous for his landscapes animated with kettle, very much like Paulus Potter.
We'll also be offering a choice collection of ancient sculptures, dating from the 14th till 17th century, besides some Old Master prints, books and drawings.
The sale includes a fair portion of Old Master prints, drawings and valuable books.
The most precious item is Sanderus' 'Flandria Illustrata' edition from 1641-44 (lot 222, est. € 8000-10000 euros). But also the 1566 edition of 'Die nieuwe chronijcke van Brabandt', edited by Jan Mollijns, with a very early wood engraved view of ice skaters on the river Scheldt (lot 215, € 1000-1200) will draw enough attention. And no sale of valuable books without the ever present Guicciardini, this time with his 1660 edition 'Belgicae sive Inferioris Germaniae' (lot 223, est. € 350-500).
On the side of Old Master prints, we'll be presenting a number of engraved suites edited in Paris around 1600 by either Jean le Clerc IV or Thomas de Leu. The most notable, however, is Jean Van Halsbeecks' 'Figurae Libri Apocalypsis beati Ioannis. Figures du Livre de l'Apocalypse ou des revelations de St. Jean' (lot 197, est. € 700-900) and lot 186, a reunion of five suites on christian hermites and reclusive figures (est. € 1500-1800).
And also the etching by Jan Lievens of a young girl with long hair hanging down, here in it's second state, will draw attention (lot 200, est. € 500-600), as will the drawing by Pieter Thys, representing Saint Roch being lokked after and fed (lot 213, est. € 1000-1500).
As it's a far more classical sale, the collectors of high end paintings from the Romantic era will have ample choice: from Willem Linnig de Oude, there is a magnificent 'End of the day', from 1874, est.: € 3000/4000, a few marine paintings by Auguste Musin or a collaboration between Eugène Verboeckhoven and Alexander Daiwaille.
Two panels by Johannes Rosierse (1818-1901) will accompany two works by the far better know 'clair-obscur' painter Petrus Van Schendel (1806-1870), while a harsh choice can be made between two landscapes by Andreas Schelfhout, of which one dated 1863, estimated € 30/35000.
But there is also a 'Young bacchus' by Joseph Paelinck (est.: € 25/35000), work by Eugène Siberdt, Joseph Lies, the Portielje family a.o.
From the former Kooning Galery in London comes a 'Le nouveau-né' by Louis Edmond Pomey (1831-1901) estimated € 10/12000.
From more or less the same era comes an exquisite sculpture by the Italian artist Agostino Marazzani-Visconti: Arab on horseback, bronze, 1895.
Needless to say we also offer 'd'époque' tapestries, furniture, jewellery and all kinds of applied arts.
