John the Baptist praying
Juan van der Hamen y León , 1620–1622
184 cm × 143.5 cm
Oil on canvas
Private collection, Madrid
John the Baptist at Prayer is a painting by the Spanish painter Juan van der Hamen y León that was created around 1620–1622. The 184 cm × 143.5 cmpicture, paintedin oil on canvas, depicts John the Baptist . It is an early history painting by Juan van der Hamens and is now in a Madrid private collection.
Image description
The painting shows John the Baptist kneeling in the center of the picture so that one knee is touching the floor while the other leg is crouched and bent. He is wearing a red coat, his limbs are modeled by the light. His arms are outstretched, his hands clasped in prayer. His head, above which a halo can be seen, is raised, John's gaze is directed upwards. To the left of John is a sheep that stands out white against the dark, rocky background and looks at the saint. Behind John's head and back the landscape opens into the distance and a river and a hill can be seen.
background
John the Baptist at prayer has a lot in common with van der Hamen's painting San Isidro , which must have been made around the same time. This picture was one of the earliest known works by van der Hamen. However, it has little in common with his later history paintings. The painting shows the San Isidro van der Hamen's skill in anatomical drawing, which was a testament to his training. John the Baptist in prayer is characterized by a strong naturalism. The strong light plays on the sculpted body of the saint and the fur of the sheep, which lifts these forms out of the surrounding landscape. Despite this strong modeling through light and shadow, Juan van der Hamen y León used a black line on the left arm in order to emphasize its shape even more. He did the same with San Isidro's legs. Van der Hamen later took up the subject of John the Baptist for his work in the Convento de la Encarnación .
The provenance of the painting is not known. On May 30, 2000, John the Baptist was up for auction at Finarte's prayer in Madrid, but was not accepted.
literature
- William B. Jordan : Juan van der Hamen y León & The Court of Madrid . Yale University Press, New Haven 2005. ISBN 0-300-11318-8 .