Andrea Piccinelli, called Andrea Brescianino

The following condition report has been provided by Karen Thomas of Thomas Art Conservation LLC., 336 West 37th Street, Suite 830, New York, NY 10018, 212-564-4024, info@thomasartconservation.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. The strong palette and softly modeled forms allow this picture to present nicely despite some wear. Scattered retouching, portions of which have discolored over time, is evident but not extensive. Along the panel join in the upper right corner a crack has developed, with attendant losses; there is also some detachment to a fill above the Christ child's head. Small old losses are evident at the central join, passing through the Virgin's face, retouching of which would help to restore the volume. The natural resin varnish is even and not significantly discolored. The softwood panel is composed of three members with a central horizontal cross-batten. Some worm tunneling and mechanical damage are visible on the back. Although this painting may be enjoyed in its current state, corrective retouching would help re-establish the smooth tonalities of the flesh passages and reduce the distraction of discolored restorations.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This unpublished Madonna and Child with the Infant Saint John the Baptist is typical of Brescianino’s style.  The figures have a distinctive solidity to their forms and are painted with the artist’s characteristic softness, the flesh gently molded with sfumato effects.  The figure of the Madonna is remarkably similar to those in a painting sold in London, Sotheby’s in 1972 and to another in the Chiaramonte Bordonaro collection, Palermo.¹  The thinly arched brows and shaded eyes, the rounded cheek and jaw line and the pert lips with a pronounced dimple below, all find parallels in the London and Palermo paintings.   In addition, while here, the Christ Child is shown seated rather than standing, the artist places him on a similar stone plinth, with the same tasseled cushion.  Brescianino sets his figures within a landscape with a distant city and mountains beyond and the skyline is broken by long, sparsely leafed trees in the middle ground, reminiscent of those by Fra Bartolomeo.  

 We are grateful to Carlo Falciani for endorsing the attribution on the basis of photographs.

1.  Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby’s, 8 March 1972, lot 88 and listed in Fondazione Zeri Fototeca archive, inv. no. 36772, respectively.