Agnolo di Cosimo, known as 'il Bronzino' (Monticelli di Firenze, 1503 – Florence, 1572)
The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist
Oil on panel (120 x 90 cm. - In an antique frame 146 x 116 cm.)
The work is accompanied by an expertise from Professor Stephan D. Pepper, dated 12.5.96 (Rome)
The complete details relating to this painting can be viewed directly at the following - LINK -
A painting of great charm and collectible relevance is examined, a high-quality version of the very famous 'Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist' created in 1528 by Andrea del Sarto (Florence 1486 - 1530), one of the most illustrious exponents among the protagonists of the High Florentine Renaissance.
Better known as the 'Sacra Famiglia Borgherini' after the commissioner Giovanni Borgherini, a member of one of the most important Florentine families of the time, it is now housed at the Metropolitan Museum in New York (Inv. 22.75).
Record on the museum's official website (link)
With this grandly solemn composition, Sarto confirmed himself as 'the painter without defects', as Giorgio Vasari liked to call him: his figures are masterfully drawn, rendered with splendid chromatic harmony, and finally the relationship between the figures, arranged with an air of nobility, offers us a sublime choreography that unites the four characters.
The painting, commissioned in the same year that Florence managed to free itself from the Medici's dominion and declared itself a Republic, also carries a political meaning, with John the Baptist, the city's patron, handing the globe with the cross to the young Child Jesus, while still holding onto it with his hands, symbolizing that both - and therefore both the city and the Church - would act as protectors and guarantors of the freedom of the Florentine Republic.
Considered one of the most important jewels of the Florentine Renaissance, a masterpiece of the painter's early maturity, it was one of the artist's most admired and copied compositions, enjoying particular fortune among Florentine collectors even at that time: this explains the numerous copies, autographed or from the workshop, that enrich just as many international museums [1].
While there is no perfect correspondence, at the compositional level, between the original and the painting we are offering - which indeed faithfully reproduces its compositional structure - there are also differences in the pictorial execution and the resulting appearance.
The very high pictorial quality that distinguishes the present work allows us to attribute its paternity to a leading Florentine artist of the early 16th century, who was able to restore all its original poetry, albeit personalizing it with his own stylistic imprint.
In particular, the pictorial material applied uniformly and the superb use of sfumato, with a modeling that leads us - as suggested by Stephan D. Pepper in his report - to find the youthful hand of Agnolo di Cosimo, il Bronzino (Monticelli di Firenze, 1503 – Florence, 1572), an undisputed master for the accuracy in applying the pictorial material and the 'glazing' technique, with which he rendered his enamel-like and transparent painting.
Bronzino developed from his earliest works an unmistakable style, unique for its elegance, compositional balance, and chromatic splendor, with a unique pictorial power made possible by modeling with decisive lines, which gives the figures a sculpted and smooth appearance similar to porcelain.
Elements such as the light spots that illuminate the subjects, or the Madonna's veil, semi-transparent, have been rendered here in a virtuosic manner.
[1] Among the various copies inspired by the Sacra Famiglia Bolgherini, executed by Sarto's workshop or by contemporary artists, and now housed in public and private collections, we can mention:
- Florence, Uffizi Palazzo Pitti: link
- Cesare da Sesto, Candiani Milan: link
- Christie's Auction House Rome, June 5, 2000: link
- Sotheby's Auction House New York, January 9, 1980: link
- Bonaiuti Collection, Rome (Lazio, Italy): link
- Gasparrini, Rome (attributed to Nicolò Circignani called Il Pomarancio): link
The canvas is in excellent condition. Complete with antique frame.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
The work is sold with a certificate of warranty and authenticity, and a descriptive iconographic sheet.
We handle and organize the transport of purchased works, both within Italy and abroad, through professional and insured carriers.
It is our duty to inform you that, given the delicacy of some particular antique frames, there is a possibility that minor damage to the gilding may occur during transport, despite the utmost care taken in packaging.
It is also possible to view the painting in our gallery in Riva del Garda; we will be happy to welcome you to show you our collection of works.
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