Master of Alzira (Gaspar Godos?)

Madonna with the Child, Saint Elizabeth and the Infant Saint John.   Oil painting on wood. Valencia, circa 1530. 73 x 65.6 cm.   According to the report that Dr. Alberto Velasco Gonzàlez has dedicated to this painting, this panel must be attributed to the Master of Alzira, a painter active in Valencia during the first half of the 16th century. The work shows a carefully depicted scene in which Elizabeth rests her left hand on Mary's back while she is breastfeeding Jesus, who turns around to look the former in the eye. Elizabeth, in turn, encircles Saint John and the Christ Child with her other arm, while the Virgin Mary holds Jesus’ left foot and places her right hand on the other infant's back. The composition, of a pyramidal and balanced type, is striking due to its emphasis on mother-child love and for the physical interactions that occur between the characters, which are evident in the tender glances and the playful attitude of the children. It is certain that the painting was intended for private, or domestic worship, so it follows that it was not part of any altarpiece and functioned autonomously. In the context of the sacra conversazione, the inclusion of Saint John in paintings that had the Virgin and Child as the main characters was a common resource for giving compositions more sweetness by adding the narrative and nuances of children and love. This encouraged the people who prayed privately before them to develop an affectionate bond with these images, which is why numerous paintings from the Hispanic context, especially in the Valencian environment, incorporated the young Baptist, his mother or other figures. We can see examples of this in work by Vicente Macip, Joan de Joanes, Paolo de San Leocadio and Miguel Esteve, among others.   As for the artist, the Master of Alzira is a painter who was deeply influenced by Leonardo da Vinci due to his probable training with the “Hernandos” (Fernando Llanos and Fernando Yáñez de la Almedina). His art is striking for its rotund figures with a solid constitution and very expressive faces that testify to Leonardo’s strong influence on some of the painters active in the Valenica area. It can be observed that both Elizabeth's face and the figures of the two children show very obvious debts to the Italian artist.  Finally, it should be noted that recently experts have claimed that the identity of the Master of Alzira is that of Gaspar Godos (circa 1480-1547), a painter who probably came from Aragon and who later settled in Valencia.  We would like to thank Dr. Alberto Velasco Gonzàlez for identifying and cataloguing this work. Dr. Alberto Velasco Gonzàlez’s report is attached.   Provenance: private collection.