Bernardo Strozzi

The painting is far warmer in tone than it appears in the catalogue, particularly in St. Jerome's flesh tones. The canvas has an old relining and two damages have also been patched on the reverse: one, a repaired tear (3 x 5 cm.) just above Jerome's right shoulder; the other, a T-shaped repaired tear (3 x 8 cm.) turned on its side, just above the book lower centre. The painting is not excessively dirty, but some dirt is still ingrained in the recesses of the thicker brushwork. The varnish layer is uneven and would benefit from being changed. The paint surface has not been pressed by the relining, particularly in the lighter tones, and Strozzi's characteristic impasto and loose brushwork has survived extremely well in these areas. Apart from the two patched damages mentioned above, another repaired tear (8 cm. approx.) is visible under ultra-violet light: this runs vertically from the curl of Jerome's nose, down through his moustache and mouth. Further damages are visible on Jerome's conjoined hands, especially in the fingers closest to the lower picture edge. A number of retouchings are visible along the edges and more peripheral areas, slightly more concentrated on Jerome's right shoulder and the red drapery below it, as well as in the lower right corner. Much of the background fluoresces under ultra-violet light but further retouchings should be presumed in these areas, specifically in the right background. Jerome's left eye which is in shadow has been carefully strengthened. Overall, the painting has retained much of its original brushwork and is very likely to improve after cleaning and revarnishing. The cassetta-style gilt wood frame is old, though it does not appear to be original with the painting (it is slightly too wide), and except for normal wear and tear the frame appears to be in good order.
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The design of this unpublished painting fits neatly into a series of bust-length portrayals of saints by Strozzi, all of very similar dimensions to the present canvas and probably painted in the second decade of the seventeenth century. A Saint Peter from this series which was formerly in the Rovelli collection in Florence shows a bearded man looking up in much the same way as in the present work.¹

¹ See L. Mortari, Bernardo Strozzi, Rome 1995, p. 121, cat. no. 178, reproduced.