ABRAHAM BRUEGHEL (ANTWERP 1631-1697 NAPLES) AND GUILLAUME COURTOIS, IL BORGOGNONE (ST. HIPPOLYTE 1628-1679 ROME)
Vases of flowers with putti in a landscape; and Garlands of flowers with putti in a landscape
the first signed and indistinctly dated 'ABrughel fec 16[...]' (lower right, on a vase, 'AB' in ligature); the second signed and indistinctly dated 'ABrughel · fec 16[...]' (lower right, 'AB' in ligature)
oil on canvas
47³⁄₄ x 80⁷⁄₈ in. (121.3 x 205.4 cm.), each
a pair

Fra' Marc'Antonio Zondadari, Grand Master of the Order of Malta (1658-1722), Palazzo Carniero, Valletta, by circa 1721.
Anonymous sale; Christie's, London, 9 July 1982, lot 14, as with the putti as 'possibly the work of Guillaume Courtois'.
Anonymous sale; Finarte, Milan, 16 April 1985, lots 81 and 82.
Private colletion, Milan, by 1989.

J. Spike, Italian Still Life Paintings From Three Centuries, exhibition catalogue, Florence and New York, 1983, p. 129, fig. 16 (only the first illustrated), as 'Abraham Brueghel and Guillaume Courtois?'.
F. Porzio, La natura morta in Italia, Milan, 1989, II, pp. 789 and 792-93, figs. 932-933, as 'Abraham Brueghel and Guillaume Courtois'.
G. Bocchi and U. Bocchi eds., Pittori di natura morta a Roma. Artisti stranieri 1630-1750, Viadana, 2005, I, pp. 125, 130 and 147, fig. AB:13 (only the first illustrated), note 21, as 'Abraham Brueghel and Guillaume Courtois'.
L. Trezzani, 'La natura morta romana nelle foto di Federico Zeri', La natura morta di Federico Zeri, Bologna, 2015, pp. 189 and 193, note 15.

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Lot Essay

The genre of paintings combining figures with still life elements was first popularized in Rome by artists like Michelangelo Cerquozzi in the mid-seventeenth century and later found favor in Naples as well. A logical progression was the production of collaborative works, which employed the skills of specialist still life and figure painters. Among the earliest and best known examples of such paintings are the decorative scheme of flowers and putti for two painted mirrors that Carlo Maratti and Mario Nuzzi executed for the Palazzo Colonna at some point after 1654.

Though trained in his native Antwerp as a still life painter, Abraham Brueghel, the son of Jan Brueghel II, departed for Italy in 1649 to complete a commission of nine still life paintings for Prince Antonio Ruffo in Sicily in that year. A decade later, he moved to Rome, married and was admitted to the Compagnia di San Luca. In addition to his independent still life paintings, Brueghel collaborated in Rome with a number of figural painters. Among his most frequent collaborators was the French-born artist Guillaume Courtois, with whom he painted, among other works, a Ceres seated by a fountain attended with putti which was formerly in the collection of The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.

John Spike was the first scholar to posit Courtois as the hand responsible for the putti in the present pair of canvases (loc. cit.). Francesco Porzio and Gianluca and Ulisse Bocchi subsequently fully endorsed this line of thought (loc. cit.). Though the final two digits of the date are not entirely legible, the latter scholars have further suggested a date in the 1670s, no doubt before Brueghel settled in Naples around 1675 or a few years earlier. Upon his move south, Brueghel introduced such Flemish-Roman decorative still lifes to the Neapolitan market, often collaborating with the city’s leading painters, including Luca Giordano.

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The condition of lots can vary widely and the nature of the lots sold means that they are unlikely to be in a perfect condition. Lots are sold in the condition they are in at the time of sale.

The first:
This large canvas is supported on the reverse by an old glue lining and is stable on its stretcher. The paint layer is stable and there is a fine craquelure in the darkest areas of the composition. The varnish is clear although slightly dirty. There are some loses along the craquelure to the toppled vase at center right which have been restored, these are visible in raking light. There is a further loss to the right of the arm of the flying putto which has not been restored. There is an approximately 5 inch diagonal tear over the proper left thigh and right knee of the flying putto which has been restored and is visible under raking light. Further loses along the craquelure have been filled below the center of the garland, in the lower right corner, and in the dark background at far left where some of the loses have not been filled. There is a rectangular repair measuring about 1 1/2 inch x 1/2 inch on the thigh of the left putto. There are also pinpoint loses over the lower right side of the silver vase at left. Inspection under UV light reveals an uneven green varnish as well as scattered touches in the floral garland and in the background. There are also repairs to the extreme edges likely addressing frame abrasions. The painting presents well overall and is offered in a carved gilt and dark wood frame.

The second:
The large canvas is supported on the reverse with an old glue lining and is stable on its stretcher. The paint surface is slightly dirty and there is a craquelure over the darkest tone areas of the composition. The varnish is clear. There is scuffing along the extreme edges. There are pinpoint loses in the dark greenery of the planters at lower right, some of which have not been filled or retouched. Along the craquelure on the vase in the upper left corner are some loses which have been retouched. Additional loses along the craquelure are visible in the blue swag in the putto at right. There is a small, 1/2 inch x 1 inch rectangular tear in the sky above the red flowers which has been delicately repaired. Inspection under UV light reveals a varnish which flourishes green in scattered areas. Further inspection reveals minor scattered retouches throughout the composition which do not distract from its overall impact. Overall the painting presents well but could benefit from a light clean to remove surface dust. It is offered in a dark and gilt wood frame.

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