Attributed to Jan Lievens

Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science, 1983 (acc. no. L84.12).

Fresno, Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science, Visages: Persistence in Portraiture, 6 October 1984-28 February 1985, no. 14 (as by Jan Lievens).

Visages: Persistence in Portraiture, exhibition catalogue, Fresno 1984-5, cat. no, 14, reproduced (as by Jan Lievens).

Canvas has been relined. the paint surface on the figures has been generally well preserved with good retention of impasto and detail. some slight thinness in bottom of St. Luke's beard. the upper and lower background areas, however, are noticeably abraded, with pattern of canvas weave apparent in some areas. there is a small canvas loss at extreme lower right corner which is not visible in catalogue image. with naked eye, one can see some visible old retouches on the sides of the lectern supporting the book and to the green tablecloth. there is also a visible old repair to the lower hand of St. John. ultraviolet light reveals numerous retouches of different ages scattered throughout composition, mostly concentrated in background areas. there is a small retouch to temple of St. John, reinforcement of his pupil, some scattered on hands and white drapery. on St. Luke there are some scattered, small retouches to face and reinforcement of eyebrows and pupils. retouches to lectern and green tablecloth, as mentioned above. this painting hasn't been attended to in a long time and would benefit from sensitive restoration. some of the old retouches could be readdressed and be done more skillfullly. painting still presents a strong and impressive image. In a carved and gilt wood frame.
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This painting portrays St. Luke and St. John  seated at a small table, studying their texts, and although they are not actually looking at each other, their proximity and intensity create a close connection between them.  Tucked in behind them and partly hidden from our sight, are their attributes, an ox and an eagle, respectively.  The present work must have been intended as one of a pair, the other depicting St. Matthew and St. Mark, but that painting is apparently lost. 

Representations of two evangelists together is unusual  Most often they are depicted individually, as in Lievens's own series of the evangelists of circa 1626-27, now in the Historisches Museum, Bamberg.  The conception of the saints in three of the Bamberg pictures, St. Mark, St. Luke and St. John, is similar to the present work,  the evangelists are strong and very three dimensional, dominating the foreground physically and by their personalities, while their attributes are flattened out and fade into the background.  However,  the handling of the paint is quite different in the earlier works, bolder and a bit harder, while St. Luke and St. John is, softer and more nuanced.  It is perhaps closest to Lievens's works of the mid 1640s, such as the Sacrifice of Isaac, in the Galleria Doria Pamphilj, Rome. 

Lievens also designed a set of four etchings of the evangelists, though Matthew and Luke are known only in copies by Laurent de la Hyre.

We are grateful to Dr. Bernhard Schnackenburg for suggesting an alternative attribution to Gerrit Willemsz. Horst, based on photographs.