Vincent Sellaer, Lot n° 292

SUSANNA AND THE BOTH OLD oil on wood. Parquet flooring. 105 x 84 cm. The theme of the Old Testament is reproduced here in an unusual way as a strikingly calm scene, so that it is not the physically pressing violence of the two Old Ones, but rather Susanna's contemplation after the Old One has been persuaded to leave, that has become the subject of the picture on the right. As always, the biblical theme is the reason and pretext for bringing the female nude into the picture. The beautifully portrayed slender female figure, here scantily clad, one breast left free between the yellow cloths, corresponds to the elegant mannerist taste of the time, also with regard to the soft contours, the sfumato, which here belongs exclusively to the female figure. Susanna's upper body is set almost diagonally in the picture, in contrast to the two male figures in the background, which are depicted almost vertically. The old man with the beard on the right looks down at the young beauty with his hand held high, which is supposed to indicate his persuasion. Only the left male figure makes eye contact with the observer. The rest of the picture is shown in elegant shades of grey, here mainly the stone reliefs on the fountain in antique shapes and a figure in a robe, allegory of Pomona, standing at the top left. The triad of red, yellow and white are the predominant contrasts in the picture. (1221462) (10) Vincent Sellaer, active 1538 - 1544, attributed SUSANNA AND THE ELDERS Oil on panel. Parquetted. 105 x 84 cm. This is an unusual depiction of the Old Testament subject as a remarkably quiet scene. Instead of the usual physically pressing presence of the two Elders, this painting's subject matter is rather Susanna's reflection after the persuasion of the Elder on the right. The colour scheme emphasizes the contrasts of the triad of red, yellow and white.