Lot 360
  • 360

PIETER VAN BLOEMEN | Study of a trotting donkey with sidepacks

Estimate
2,500 - 3,500 GBP
bidding is closed

Description

  • Study of a trotting donkey with sidepacks
  • Black chalk,bears numbering in pen and brown ink:  62 (recto) and 61 (verso)
  • 205 by 202 mm

Provenance

Dr. Walter Beck, Berlin (L.2603b),
From whom acquired by F.C. Butôt (1906-92), Sankt Gilgen, Austria,
his posthumous sale, Amsterdam, Sotheby's, 16 November 1993, lot 63

Literature

L.J. Bol, G.S. Keyes and F.C. Butôt, Netherlandish Paintings and Drawings from the Collection of F.C. Butôt by little-known and rare masters of the seventeenth century, 1981, cat. 16

Condition

Window mounted. Light staining around the edges of the sheet, with more prominent staining at the lower margin. Few creases in the sheet at the upper margin. Otherwise chalk still strong.
"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

This powerfully-drawn study of a donkey is typical of the animal drawings that van Bloemen executed during his long stay in Italy, circa 1674-94.  To judge by the numbering on both sides of the sheet, it must originally have formed part of a sketchbook, or pattern book of studies that could subsequently be used as the basis for motifs in paintings.  Although this donkey is not precisely reproduced in any of the artist's surviving paintings, it appears in a more elaborate version, in the same attitude but more heavily laden with baggage and wearing a decorative plume on its head, in a painting in Stockolm (cat. 1958, no. 1106)