The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist

Copyright

Work in the public domain
Image: Courtauld
by-nc

Maker

Attributed to

1501-1547

Title

The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist

Date of Production

c. 1528-37

Medium

oil on panel

Dimensions

Height: 106.6 cm (panel)
Width: 77.6 cm (panel)

Object Number

P.1932.XX.311

Mode of Acquisition

The Art Fund, Art Fund gift & grant aid, 1932

Credit

Courtauld Gallery, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust). Purchased with assistance from The Art Fund, 1932.

Location

On display
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Keywords

Label Text

We do not know why this striking work was never finished. It offers a rare glimpse into the early stages of the painting process. Some areas are defined only in pencil, such as the Virgin Mary’s face, carefully traced from a separate drawing. In contrast, her drapery is sketched freely with a fine brush and ink. Hints of a landscape in the upper left, also in ink, indicate an elaborate background was originally planned before the composition was changed. Finally, the painter started modelling the adults’ hands and the children in thin layers of oil paint.

Provenance

ex. coll. Lord Northbrook, purchased by the Art Fund from Agnews and presented to the Courtauld Institute of Art, 1932; transferred from the Courtauld Institute of Art to the Samuel Courtauld Trust, 2002.

Exhibition History

The Courtauld at the National Gallery, National Gallery, London, 27/03/2019-05/08/2019
Unfinished: Thoughts Left Visible, The Met Breuer, New York, 18/03/2016-04/09/2016
Summer Showcase - Unfinished, Courtauld Gallery, London, 18/06/2015-20/09/2015

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