Follower of Mateo Cerezo

Follower of MATEO CEREZO (Burgos, 1637-Madrid, 1666).
"Magdalene penitent".
Oil on canvas.
It has a frame of the late nineteenth century.
Measurements. 82 x 64 cm; 100 x 84 cm (frame).
The composition of this work faithfully follows those of the painting made by Mateo Cerezo in 1661, which currently belongs to the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Mateo Cerezo trained in Madrid, becoming part of Carreño's workshop. He was an artist in great demand by a varied clientele, especially for his religious painting, although he also tackled other genres. In this sense, the treatise writer and biographer Palomino declared the excellence with which he painted "bodegoncillos, with such superior excellence, that no one surpassed him", a judgment fully corroborated when contemplating the works in the National Museum of San Carlos in Mexico, which are signed and dated. Based on them, Perez Sanchez attributed to him the still life of kitchen bought by the Prado Museum in 1970, a work of obvious Flemish influence that, at times, has led to think of Pereda. The works of this artist from Valladolid have also been pointed out as Cerezo's ancestors, especially in his early creations. We know that in 1659 Cerezo was working in Valladolid, where he left works that were somewhat rougher than those he produced in the following decade. In his works he affirms himself as a faithful follower of Carreño, of whom he became one of his best collaborators. The master showed him the path that he himself later followed, following the path of Van Dyck and Titian.
This canvas depicts Mary Magdalene as a penitent in the desert, dressed in a jet robe, on which stands out the bright tone of her pearly skin. This characteristic added to the darkness of the scene, and the theatrical gesture of the protagonist, holding a skull and with her gaze fixed on the crucifix, with her mouth half-open, manage to configure a scene of contained, symbolic and intimate emotion.