- 50
Maerten Ryckaert
Description
- Maerten Ryckaert
- Mountainous landscape with a clifftop castle and goats frolicking on the rocks
- oil on copper
Provenance
Condition
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
As with all of Ryckaert's landscapes the influence of Paul Bril is unmistakeable. Ryckaert is thought to have studied under Bril in Rome circa 1605–10.2 The compositional device, with a near-to rocky outcrop in shade in the left foreground and sweeping panorama beyond, is quintessentially 'Bril-ian' while the handling however betrays Ryckaert's own highly distinctive brush. Ryckaert, from a family of painters, was famously one-armed (as we see in Van Dyck's famous portrait of him, fig. 1), which makes his finely detailed landscapes all the more remarkable.
1. Two further versions of the composition were sold London, Sotheby's, 11 March 1964, lot 33, and 12 December 1984, lot 50 but both seem to be of lesser quality than the others.
2. There is some debate as to whether Ryackert actually went to Italy at all. If not Bril's influence muct have reached him in Antwerp through the plethora of prints that made their way back to Flanders from Rome.