Old Masters Nude Paintings

Martyrdom of Freedom This is one of the exhibition’s most overtly allegorical works. Echoing Saint Sebastian, Surdo presents the body as beautiful, wounded, and publicly exposed. The...

We would like to thank Professor Sergio Marinelli for confirming the authenticity of this (unsigned) painting by Felice Brusasorci. His study of the artwork (in Italian), which inspi...

Marcantonio Franceschini (Bologna 1648 - 1729) Workshop of Sleeping Venus with Cupid Oil on canvas 53 x 68 cm. In frame 71 x 91 cm. Venus, the Roman goddess of love, is port...

Study of the Male Back French School, early/ mid 19th century charcoal on artist paper stuck on board, glass covering framed framed: 13 x 9 inches board : 12 x 8 inches Provenance: p...

This finely executed drawing in pen and wash is typical of the work of Leonaert Bramer, one of the most fascinating yet little-known artists of 17th-century Holland. In a nocturnal ...

German School, Figure Study, c.1890, Oil on canvas, 64cm x 39cm, (74cm x 50cm framed). The painting has been recently cleaned and is in a new period style frame. This wonderfully t...

St. John the Baptist in the Wilderness Italian Old Master, early 17th century circle of Merisi da Caravaggio (Italian, 1571-1610) oil painting on canvas: 76 x 50 inches antique gilt ...

Jan van Haensbergen was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age and a pupil of Cornelius van Poelenburgh (Utrecht 1594 - 1667). The painting we are presenting is inspired by Poelenburgh’s landscapes from his Italian sojourn. The dreamlike atmosphere of this Gathering in antique ruins appealed to us. Against a backdrop of antique ruins, three draped characters (perhaps bathers) are sitting in a circle, greeting a fourth character walking towards them. Their tranquility contrasts with the bustle of the other characters in the background. They constitute a vivid illustration of otium, this leisure time that allows us to realize our full potential. With this Arcadian landscape, Jan van Haensbergen invites us in turn to leave the hustle and bustle of everyday life behind, to take a break, to enjoy the present moment chatting with close friends… 1. Jan van Haensbergen, a landscape and portrait painter of the Dutch Golden Age Jan van Haensbergen was born in 1642 in Gorinchem, a town in southern Holland to the east of Rotterdam. He was a pupil of Cornelius van Poelenburgh, and began by painting landscapes inspired by those of his master, in an Italianate style. Between 1668 and 1669, he was registered at the Guild of Saint Luke in Utrecht. In 1669, he moved to The Hague, where he joined the Confrérie Pictura, an artist society founded in 1656. His portraits, which became his main activity as a painter after settling in The Hague, were strongly influenced by Caspar Netscher (Prague or Heidelberg 1639 - The Hague 1684), whom he met in The Hague and whose son Constantijn became his son-in-law by marrying his daughter Magdalena. In addition to his work as an artist, Van Haensbergen was also an art dealer, probably helped by his appointment as Dean of the Confrérie Pictura, where he also teached. 2. Description of the artwork and related paintings This painting seems to us to be a kind of allegory of otium, that quiet bliss promised by Epicurus. It might even evoke an Epicurean proverb: "It is better to lie on the naked ground and be at ease, than to have a golden carriage and a rich table and be worried" . Three draped young people - two men and a woman in the background - are seated in a circle, greeting a fourth figure walking towards them, hair disheveled and body draped in a towel as if drying off after a bath, indicating the need for prior purification to fully enjoy this rest. Their nonchalance contrasts with the bustle of the various characters in the background. The composition is punctuated by successive diagonals, and opens onto a landscape on the right, with a succession of mountainous planes. This painting is typical of the Italianate works produced by Van Haensbergen in the 1660s under the influence of Cornelis van Poelenburgh...

Venus & Bacchus Italian School, 17th century oil painting on canvas: 7 x 10 inches framed: 12 x 15 inches condition: some brittle paint surfaces, minor flaking and areas of loss but ...

Follower of Hans von Aachen (18th-19th century) - Athena. 24 x 19 cm without frame, 29 x 23 cm with frame. Antique oil painting on wood, in a gilded wooden frame. - The painting i...

The Young and Old Man Study of a young, muscled male nude with an older man the work is most likely to be a fragment cut down mysteriously from a larger painting oil on canvas laid o...

Italian painter (late 18th century) - Allegory of Peace. 31 x 26 cm with frame. Antique oil painting on zinc plate on fake tortoiseshell background, in gilded wooden frame. Condit...

Jupiter & Diana French Old Master, early 1700's oil on canvas, unframed canvas: 30.5 x 39 inches provenance: private collection, Paris condition: good and sound condition, minor sur...

The Sick Man Flemish School, 17th century oil painting on panel, framed framed: 9.75 x 9.75 inches board: 6.5 x 6.5 inches provenance: private collection, France condition: very good...

The Penitent Magdalene French School, 18th century oil on canvas, unframed canvas : 33 x 21.5 inches provenance: private collection, France condition: very good and sound condition, ...