JULIE VON BREDOW GAMBONI, AFTER FRANS WOUTERS | Venus and Adonis

signed and inscribed on the reverse: 'Venus et Adonis de Rubens / 'Copié d'après l'original par Julie von Bredow Gamboni'';the reverse with a Galleria degli Uffizi red wax sealoil on canvas, unlined A late 19th or early 20th century copy after the painting which depicts Venus attempting to prevent Adonis from hunting, in the Uffizi, Florence, datable to 'circa' 1640–50. The painting was formerly attributed to Rubens (as the inscription on the back of the present canvas testifies) but has since been attributed to his pupil, Frans Wouters.1 Wouters entered Rubens' studio in 1634 and also came to England to work on commissions for Charles I in 1637. This composition reflects Wouters' debt to Rubens, as well as to Jan Brueghel the Elder, with whom Rubens often collaborated. The two dogs, lower left, for example, recur in several works by Jan Brueghel, including the painting executed in collaboration with Hendrick van Balen recently sold at Sotheby's in July.2 It must be assumed that Wouters also encountered this motif while working in Rubens' studio. Julie von Bredow Gamboni was the daughter of Otto von Bismarck's relative, Leopold Waldemar von Bredow. She married Ferdinand Gamboni, a headmaster, and they lived in the celebrated Villa Mercedes on Capri. Her copy of Titian's 'Portrait of Caterina Cornaro', the original of which is also in the Uffizi, is in the Leventis Municipal Museum of Nicosia, Cyprus. 1 https://rkd.nl/explore/images/388142 http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/old-masters-evening-l18033/lot.31.html

Private collection, The Netherlands, until acquired by the present owners.

All paintings available to view at the Sotheby’s Greenford Park warehouse, 5 - 7 and 10 – 13 September (10 - 4pm), by appointment. The canvas is unlined, the paint surface is quite dirty and the varnish is discoloured. The canvas shows evidence of slight wear, particularly lower centre, where there are also scattered pinprick losses. There are also paint losses along the upper half of the left margin and in the upper right corner. Inspection under ultraviolet light reveals retouchings scattered throughout the figures, centre, most notably to an area in Venus' white shawl. There are further retouchings, lower left, in her red garment, and in the knees of the central attendant, lower left.
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