1108 - BLES, HERRI MET DE

BLES, HERRI MET DE c. 1500 Flanders–1560 Italy Title: Riverscape with Christ on the Road to Emmaus. Date: c. 1530. Technique: Oil on panel. Dimensions: Painting diameter: 26.5 cm. Frame diameter: 36 cm. Reverse: On the panel are two numbered labels (244 / 479) as well as a collection label reading “Sammlung M.v.Nemes.” When a previously hidden painting by a famous artist comes to light, it is always a sensation: each work, like a mosaic tile, ultimately helps refine the perspective from which its creator and their body of work are viewed. This is even more true if the artist is an early modern painter whose life and works remain shrouded in mystery, yet whose influence on his contemporaries and successors is undeniable. We are therefore delighted to present here a small tondo by the Flemish Renaissance painter Herri met de Bles. Luc Serck dates it—based on a version similar to this one at the Van den Bergh Museum in Antwerp—to ca. 1530/1540, and it has been in the family’s possession continuously since the 1930s. The biography of Herri met de Bles has not yet been fully established. He was likely born in Bouvigne, near Dinant in Flanders. Researchers disagree as to whether Herri met de Bles was a relative and student of the great Joachim Patinir or rather his rival. Did this painter live in Italy for an extended period in the 1520s and settle there permanently from 1530 onward, where he is believed to have died in 1560? Or did he maintain a thriving studio in Antwerp? It is safe to say that Herri met de Bles profoundly influenced early modern landscape painting with his world landscapes, following in the tradition of Joachim Patinir. Furthermore, there is no doubt that he gained widespread recognition in Italy. There he was known by the name “Civetta” (little screech owl); several of his works are signed with this bird. As early as the 17th century, Herri met de Bles was described as “celebratissimo” in Italy. In Herri met de Bles’s paintings, the often religious subject matter is visually subordinate to the expansive landscapes, which are delicately rendered even in their depths. The viewer is invited to let their eyes wander across the small scales—designed for close-up viewing—and to discover ever-new delicate details as well as thematic references. In this tondo, the picture surface and the frame are carved as a single unit from a single oak panel—a distinctive feature that recurs frequently in the painter’s work. Even the visual composition of the landscape is entirely characteristic of Herri met de Bles: in the left half of the image, a rugged hill crowned by a castle rises in the middle ground. In the foreground, the viewer can see the risen Christ, depicted as a small figure flanked by his two disciples, on the road to Emmaus. Roughly in the center of the painting, rugged cliffs border a body of water that stretches far toward the front edge of the composition. The artist has painted the shells on the beach and the waves with the most delicate detail. Fishermen are hauling in their nets at the water’s edge; a bridge spans the water, and the eye can wander into the distance, limited only by a mountain range on the horizon. From this vantage point, the domes and battlements of Jerusalem tower overhead; this is where Jesus’ companions have departed. In the foreground, trees with exquisitely painted foliage stand on the right bank; above them, agricultural plains with plowing farmers and a shepherd tending his sheep stretch out. Even in the most distant recesses, the depiction of everyday life—with its details and people—is meticulously crafted. Herri met de Bles has chosen the road to Emmaus as a central theme in his paintings on multiple occasions, and he has also thematically combined this episode from the Gospel of Luke with motifs from the Gospel of John. There, the story of the fishing on the Sea of Tiberias at the command of the resurrected Christ is recounted, as well as the request, “Feed my lambs.” In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus speaks again of the farmers plowing the fields. These motifs from everyday life can be interpreted within the context of the Gospels as a mission to carry on Christ’s legacy and were familiar to theologically knowledgeable observers of the 16th century. We are grateful to Luc Serck, Brussels, for confirming the attribution of this painting based on a high-resolution digital photograph. Provenance: Private collection, Germany; Nemes Collection auction: Hugo Helbing, Munich, November 2, 1933, lot 26; Marcell von Nemes Collection, Budapest and Munich: Rudolph Lepke auction, Berlin, November 7, 1916, lot 74 (as *Herri met de Bles*). Estimated shipping costs for this lot: This lot is not suitable for parcel shipping. Transport is available only through a shipping company after consultation following the auction. Additional shipping insurance Shipping insurance up to a total invoice amount of 25,000 euros: max. 41.65 euros for a total invoice amount exceeding 25,000 euros: 1.8 per thousand Shipping to the USA by individual arrangement after the auction. #Herri met de Bles #Flemish School #Flanders