Dutch school, 17th century. Lot n° 48

Dutch school, 17th century. "The Departure of Abraham. Oil on panel. Measurements: 57 x 75 cm; 68 x 85 cm (frame). The theme of this painting could be linked to an episode in the life of Abraham. We see the patriarch on the right side of a landscape with ruins, talking to a woman with a child (it could be Hagar and Ishmael) about the need to leave for Canaan, by divine request. The type of landscape with figures is very close to the work of the painter Cornelis van Poelenburch, who masterfully depicts it here. Poelenburch, like other Dutch artists of the time, set biblical scenes in Italian-inspired settings, with ancient ruins lending a timeless patina to an idealised nature. The warm tones in the foreground contrast with the different levels of blue that gradually harness the forms to depict the atmosphere in the distance. Costumbrismo and biblical subject matter interact naturally in this genre of Netherlandish painting.