Christie's New York
January 30, 2013
Sale 2673
Lot 148, "Madonna and Child with Young Saint John the Baptist," by Botticelli, tempera, oil and gold on panel, 18 1/4 by 14 1/2 inches
By
Carter B. Horsley
The "Renaissance" auction at Christie's New York January 30, 2013 is highlighted by two paintings by Botticelli and excellent examples by Bronzino, Fra Bartolommeo, Bartolomeo Veneto and Lucas Cranach II and a large drawing by Raphael.
Lot 148 is a small but exquisite tempera, oil and gold and panel of "Madonna and Child with Young Saint John the Baptist" by Alessandro Filipepi, called Sandro Botticelli (1444/5-1510).
The catalogue notes that it was with Lord Duveen in 1925 and by 1931 was with John D. Rockefeller Jr. (1874-1960), and then by descent with Winthrop Paul Rockefeller (1912-1973) of marrilton, Arkansas, and then with Gerald P. Gutterman of Bedford, N.Y., and then with the Ishizuka Collection in Tokyo in 1987 and then was sold to the present owner at Christie's in New York May 21, 1992.
The work has been exhibited occasionally but has extensive literature.
The "Renaissance" auction at Christie's New York January 30, 2013 is highlighted by two paintings by Botticelli and excellent examples by Bronzino, Fra Bartolommeo, Bartolomeo Veneto and Lucas Cranach II and a large drawing by Raphael.
Lot 148 is a small but exquisite tempera, oil and gold and panel of "Madonna and Child with Young Saint John the Baptist" by Alessandro Filipepi, called Sandro Botticelli (1444/5-1510).
The catalogue notes that it was with Lord Duveen in 1925 and by 1931 was with John D. Rockefeller Jr. (1874-1960), and then by descent with Winthrop Paul Rockefeller (1912-1973) of marrilton, Arkansas, and then with Gerald P. Gutterman of Bedford, N.Y., and then with the Ishizuka Collection in Tokyo in 1987 and then was sold to the present owner at Christie's in New York May 21, 1992.
The work has been exhibited occasionally but has extensive literature.
Detail of Lot 148, "Madonna and Child with Young Saint John the Baptist," by Botticelli, tempera, oil and gold on panel
It
has a conservative estimate of $5,000,000 to $7,000,000. It
sold to an anonymous buyer for $10,442,500 included the buyer's premium
as do all results mentioned in this article. It was an auction record
for the artist. Of the 51 offered lots in
this auction, 33 sold for $42,646,850.
In the catalogue, Everett Fahy provided the following commentary about the painting:
"....Christiansen...notes that the stylized rocky landscape is typical of Botticelli.....The diaphonous veil that holds back the Virgin's blonde tresses is a particularly Botticellian detail that accentuates the sinuous grace of the picture."
In the catalogue, Everett Fahy provided the following commentary about the painting:
"....Christiansen...notes that the stylized rocky landscape is typical of Botticelli.....The diaphonous veil that holds back the Virgin's blonde tresses is a particularly Botticellian detail that accentuates the sinuous grace of the picture."
Lot 118, "The Madonna and Child with a pomegranate," by Botticelli, tempera and oil on panel, 29 by 17 inches
Lot 118 is another
Botticelli, "The Madonna and Child with a pomengranate," a tempera and
oil on panel that measures 29 by 17 inches. It has an an
estimate of $3,000,000 to $5,000,000. It failed to sell. The work is a very
close copy of a Botticelli painted at the Louvre with thesame title and
very similar composition although hanging around the enclosure around
the Virgin are garlands of golden leaves. The painting at one
time had been attrbiuted to Fra Fillipo Lippi and in 1908 H. P Horne
wrote that it was by Botticelli. In the catalogue entry,
Everett Fahy attrbiutes it to Botticelli but does not remark on the
child's extrmely foreshortened head that is partially hidden by the
Virgin's face, a rather odd religious composition.
Lot 128, "The Madonna and Child," by Fra Bartolommeo, oil on panel, a tondo in its original frame, 25 1/2 inches in diameter
Lot
128 is a strikingly beautiful oil on panel tondo of "The Madonna and
Child" by Fra Bartolommeo (1472-1517). It is 25 1/2 inches in
diameter and the catalogue notes that the circular frame is original.
It has an estimate of $10,000,000 to $15,000,000. It sold for
$12,962,500, a world auction record for the artist.
The catalogue notes that the artist participated in a "Bonfire of the Vanities" organized by Savonarola in which the artist threw his own works onto the fire. The next year Savaonarola was excommunitcated, fortured and burned at the stake. The catalogue states that the painting is an great condition and said that the motif of the child climbing up to receive a kiss originated in a Byzantine-Madonna type called the Glykophilousa, adding that maternal tenderness was evident in the works of Desiderio and Donatello who often depicted the Madonna in profile "to give steadiness and simplicity to the composition." The painting, which was the cover illustration of the catalogue, is a masterpiece of composition and execution. The artist incorporated what the catalogue said was a "deepiunderstanding of Leonardo's techniques for creating tonal unity and for modeling figures with exceptionally subtle gradation of light and shadow. This ability eventually made him the most important exponent of the Leonardesque idiom in Florence."
The catalogue notes that the artist participated in a "Bonfire of the Vanities" organized by Savonarola in which the artist threw his own works onto the fire. The next year Savaonarola was excommunitcated, fortured and burned at the stake. The catalogue states that the painting is an great condition and said that the motif of the child climbing up to receive a kiss originated in a Byzantine-Madonna type called the Glykophilousa, adding that maternal tenderness was evident in the works of Desiderio and Donatello who often depicted the Madonna in profile "to give steadiness and simplicity to the composition." The painting, which was the cover illustration of the catalogue, is a masterpiece of composition and execution. The artist incorporated what the catalogue said was a "deepiunderstanding of Leonardo's techniques for creating tonal unity and for modeling figures with exceptionally subtle gradation of light and shadow. This ability eventually made him the most important exponent of the Leonardesque idiom in Florence."
Lot 106, "The Madonna and Child," by Davide Ghirlandaio, tempera, oil and gold on panel, 30 5/8 by 21 1/2 inches
Another
excellent Madonna and Child painting is Lot 106, a tempera, oil and
gold on panel by Davide Ghirlandaio (1452-1525). It measures
30 5/8 by 21 1/2 inches. It has a very modest estimate of
$300,000 to $500,000. It
sold for $386,500. Davide was the younger
brother of Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449-1494) and is known for mosaics he
did inthe facades of the Orvieto and Siena Cathedrals and stained glass
in the Pisa Cathedral, all now lost. He took over a
commission of his brother for the high altar for Santa Maria Novella in
Florence. The catalogue notes that the interesting landscape
and unusual pillow derive from Verrochio's workshop and the
Virgin's tunic and the highlights in the red hair reflect the influence
of Leonardo then perhaps still active in Verrochio's studio.
Lot 142, "Madonna and Child," by Bartolommeo Veneto, oil on panel, 25 1/8 by 22 5/8 inches
Another superb "Madonna and
Child" is Lot 142, an oil on panel by Bartolommeo Veneto (1502-1531)
It measures 25 1/8 by 22 5/8 inches. It has an
estimate of $800,000 to $1,200,000. It
sold for $962,500, a world auction record for the artist.
With its fine landscape and sky, the painting is highlighted
by the interesting angularity of the composition of the figures.
The catalogue provides the following commentary:
"This beautiful, quintessentially Venetian Madonna and Child is the earliest known picture by Bartolommeo Veneto, an important paiter of devotional works and fashionable portraits in Venice, the Veneto and Lombardy for the first decades of the 16th Century....There are three other autograph versions."
The composition is narrower but similar to the great Madonna and Child by Giovanni Bellini in the National Gallery in London.
The catalogue provides the following commentary:
"This beautiful, quintessentially Venetian Madonna and Child is the earliest known picture by Bartolommeo Veneto, an important paiter of devotional works and fashionable portraits in Venice, the Veneto and Lombardy for the first decades of the 16th Century....There are three other autograph versions."
The composition is narrower but similar to the great Madonna and Child by Giovanni Bellini in the National Gallery in London.
Lot 151, "Portrait of a Young Lady Holding a Cat," by Bachiacca, oil on panel, 21 1/8 by 17 1/4 inches
Lot 151 is a very charming
"Portrait of a Young Lady Holding a Cat" by Bachiacca (1499-1572).
An oil on panel, it measures 21 1/8 by 17 1/4 inches.
It has an estimate of $500,000 to $600,000. It sold
at Christie's New York January 12, 1996 for $443,500. At this auction, it sold for
$542,500.
Lot 105, "The Madonna and Child," by the Master of San Miniato," tempera and gold on marouflaged panel, 24 1/4 by 16 3/4 inches
Lot
105 is a very fine "Madonna and Child" by the Master of San Miniato,"
an artist who painted an altarpiece in the church of San Domenico in
San Miniato of Tedesco between Florence and Pisa between circa 1460 and
1480. The catalogue entry notes thjat his art "closely
depends on the late paintings of Filippo Lippi and Pesellino but also
reveals the influences of Benozzo Gozzoli, Domenico Ghirlanadaio,and
the young Botticelli. The lovely lot has a modest estimate of
$200,000 to $300,000. It
sold for $386,500.
Lot 137, "The Virgin and Child with infant Saint John the Baptist Sleeping," by Lucas Cranach II, oil on panel, 34 by 22 1/2 inches
Lot
137 is a large oil on panel of "The Virgin and Child with infant Saint
John the Baptist Sleeping" by Lucas Cranach II (1515-1586).
It measures 34 by 22 1/2 inches. It has an estimate
of $1,500,000 to $2.500,000. It
sold for $1,762,500.
Lot 146, "Portrait of a lady from the Triulzio family, three-quarter length," by Bernardino de' Conti, oil on panel, 42 1/2 by 30 inhces
One
of the more striking portraits in the auction is Lot 146, a later oil
on panel by Bernardino de' Conti (circa 1470-aftger 1523) of "a lady
from the Triulzio family, three-quarter length." The painting
measures 42 1/2 by 30 inches and is distinguished by its very colorful
and unconventional background. The catalogue entry notes that
this imposing work is considered a "pendant to a painting in the
Detroit Instiute of Arts...entitled "Gentleman of the Trivulzio
Family." This latter identification is based on a third picture that is
untraced and also has the same unusual background. The
painting has an estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. It failed to sell.
Lot 152, "Portrait of a Young Man with a Book," by Agnolo Bronzino, oil on panel, 37 by 30 3/4 inches
Lot
152 is a good "Portrait of a Young Man with a Book" by Agnolo Bronzino
(1503-1572). An oil on panel, it measures 37 by 30 3/4
inches. The catalogue notes that his work is "recently discovered" and
is among the earliest known works by Bronzino. It has an
ambitious estimate of $12,000,000 to $18,000,000. It failed to sell.
Lot
129, "Portrait of Jacopo Bonccompagni three-quarter length, in armor,"
by Il Gaetano (1544-1598), is an oil on canvas that measures 48 by 39
1/8 inches. The work was once in the collection of William
Collins Whitney of New York and was exhibited at the Metropolitan
Museum of Art from 1989 to 1994. The catalogue entries notes
that the artist was the "most celebrated portraitist of his generation
in Italy." The lot has an estimate of $1,500,000 to
$2,500,000. It
sold for $7,586,500!
Lot 141, "Portrait of a young man, bust-length," attributed to Giovanni Bellini, oil on canvas alid down on panel, 16 3/4 by 11 3/8 inches
Lot
141 is a portrait of a young man that the catalogue says is "attributed
to Giovanni Bellini," (1431/6-1516) although it appears to little of
his normal exquisite beauty. An oil on canvas laid down on
panel, it measures 16 3/4 by 11 3/8 inches. It has an estimate of
$100,000 to $150,000. It
failed to sell.
Lot 144, "The Judgment of Paris," by Paolo Fiammingo, oil oncanvas, 14 1/4 by 45 6/8 inches
Lot
144 is an charming oil on canvas of "The Judgment of Paris" by Paolo
Fiammingo (circa 1540-1596). It measues 14 1/4 by 45 6/8
inches. The artists was a collaborator with Tintoretto and
the catalogue notes that the composition is based on a lost drawing by
Raphael. It has an modest estimate of $120,000 to $180,000.
It failed to
sell.
Lot 127, "The Triumph of Alexander the Great," cassone panel, by Lo Scheggia, tempera, gold and silver on panel, 18 7/8 by 62 inches
Lot 127 is a very impressive
cassone panel depicting "The Triumph of Alexander the Great" by Lo
Scheggia (1406-1486). The tempera, gold and silver on panel
measures 18 7/8 by 62 inches. It has a modest estimate of
$700,000 to $1,000,000. It
failed to sell. In 1985, Everett Fahy
attributed the work to Brucianesi Master and three years later
idenfitifed that master as Bernardo di Stefano Rossselli, but the
catalogue entry noted that more recently Mr. Fahy attributed it to Lo
Scheggia, the younger brother of Massaccio (1401-1428).
Lot 147, "Saint Benedict receiving Maurus and Placidio,'" by Raphael, black and red chalk, pen and brown ink, brown and grey wash, 14 1/2 by 16 1/4 inches
Lot
147 is a chalk and ink drawing with washes by Raphael entitled "Saint
Benedict receiving Maurus and Placidio." It measure s14 1/2
by 16 1/4 inches. It has an estimate of $1,000,000 to
$1,500,000. It
sold for $1,202,500. The drawing was for a
fresco by Pinturicchio for a new library beside the Duomo in Siena.
See
The
City Review article on the
Important Old Masters auction at Sotheby's New York Winter 2012
See The City Review article on the Important Old Masters auction at Sotheby's Winter 2011
See The City Review article on the Important Old Masters auction at Sotheby's Winter 2010