Master of the prodigal son; Antwerp, circa 1560.

Master of the prodigal son; Antwerp, circa 1560.
"Judith with the head Holofernes".
Oil on oak panel. Partially cradled.
It presents restorations on the pictorial surface.

Attached report of D. Ignacio Panicello.

Measurements: 97 x 79 cm; 114 x 96 cm (frame).

The painting represents an episode of the Book of Judith, specifically the moment after the beheading of the Assyrian general Holofernes. Unlike other more triumphal representations, here a more intimate and functional narrative moment is captured: Judith, helped by her servant, puts her head in a sack to flee to Bethulia. This iconographic approach is unique, as it avoids the heroic exaltation and eroticism common in the contemporary Flemish tradition. From the formal point of view, the composition is organized in a foreground dominated by the two female figures, cut out in front of an open tent that frames the scene and directs the gaze towards the background, where a landscape with fortified architecture develops. This landscape element, which suggests the city of Bethulia, differs from other versions of the Master of the Prodigal Son with the same theme, such as those preserved in the Museo Nacional del Prado or the Alte Pinakothek, in which the Assyrian camp appears, which reinforces the originality of this variant.

The so-called Master of the Prodigal Son is an anonymous painter active in Antwerp during the second third of the 16th century (ca. 1530-1560), considered one of the leading figures of Flemish Mannerism. His conventional name comes from one of his best known works, The Prodigal Son at a Gallant Feast, preserved in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, from which the historian Georges Hulin de Loo established his catalog in 1909. The identity of the artist remains unknown. His possible identification with Leonart Kroes, mentioned by Karel van Mander, has been proposed, although this hypothesis has not been confirmed. The abundance of works and the existence of numerous versions of the same composition suggest that he ran an active workshop in Antwerp with several collaborators, which would also explain the uneven quality of some pieces.His production covers religious themes, genre scenes, allegories and landscapes. Among his most repeated compositions are Judith with the head of Holofernes and Susanna and the old men, which evidences the success of certain iconographic models within his workshop. Stylistically, his work is characterized by elongated figures, unnaturalistic anatomies, large hands and idealized faces, with clear flesh tones and marble-like appearance in the female figures.His style shows the influence of painters active in Antwerp such as Pieter Coecke van Aelst, Pieter Aertsen, Jan Mandijn and Frans Floris, as well as certain affinities with the School of Fontainebleau. Although a possible trip to Italy has been suggested for some formal characteristics, there is no documentary evidence to confirm it.