Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called il Guercino

Giuseppe Vallardi (L.1223) (only half his collector's mark visible),
possibly his sale, Paris, Hotel des Commissaires-Priseurs, 10-15 December 1860, part of lot 127;
with Colnaghi, New York and London, An Exhibition of Master Drawings, 2000, no. 18,
from whom purchased by the present owner 

 

Hinged to the mount at the upper margin. Some light brown staining in the upper right section of the sheet. There are several repaired holes, mainly located in the upper right corner and another small hole to the left of St Jerome's head. Another couple of small holes on St. Jerome's right shoulder/arm. Red chalk remains fresh and vibrant. Sold in carved and gilded frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This characteristic red chalk study by Guercino seems to relate to a painting by the artist, rediscovered some years ago in the church of Saint-Laurent in Nogent-sur-Seine.¹  Although Malvasia mentions the painting among those that Guercino executed in 1649, the artist seems to have received payment for it already in August 1645, from the patron, the Papal legate in Bologna, Cardinal Fabrizio Savelli. 

According to the Libro dei conti,² Guercino treated the subject of St Jerome in penitence no fewer than seventeen times.  This drawing shows St. Jerome half-length, looking at the Crucifix which is just visible to the upper right corner.  In the Nogent-sur-Seine canvas, the Saint is shown full-length, kneeling, but such a change could easily have been made during the development of the painting, probably at the request of the patron.  Both the facial type and the position of the left hand are very close to the finished painting, and the style of the drawing is also compatible with a date in the second half of the 1640s, making this connection perfectly possible.  Guercino continuously made changes and alterations, often very significant ones, while working out his final composition, and used drawings to clarify his ideas.  Red chalk was a medium that he employed with extreme skill throughout his career, and particularly in his later years, allowing him to achieve an astonishing variety in the tonal range of the flesh.  Here, the very finely drawn figure is harmoniously counterbalanced by the indications of a landscape behind.

¹  Le Guerchin de France, exhib. cat., Paris, Musée du Louvre, 1990, p. 63, reproduced

²  B. Ghelfi, Il libro dei conti del Guercino, Venice 1997, p. 143, no. 408