Hendrick van Somer, 1615 – 1684/ 85 Lot n° 328

Jerome in study Oil on canvas. Doubled. 174 x 114 cm. In ebonized and gilded frame. The attribution is based on a confirmation by Prof. Wayne E. Franits to previous owner. Full-length portrait of Jerome facing left above an open font with a crucifix rising behind it and a skull with a rosary lying in front of it. At his feet lies the figure of a lion attributed to him. Hendrick de Somer, who is often confused with Hendrick van Somer, is known as Enrico Fiammingo. He was one of the many painters from northern Europe who, fascinated by classical art, traveled to Italy and spent much of their lives and careers there. From 1624 he was active mainly in Naples, influenced by the painting of Giuseppe de Ribera, as reported by the Italian art historian and painter Bernardo de' Dominici in his work Lives of the Painters, Sculptors and Architects of Naples (1742-1743). Following in the footsteps of his master, he left numerous religious and mythological compositions, but was also closely associated with other Neapolitan artists such as Viviano Codazzi and Domenico Gargiulo, with whom he frequently collaborated. However, he was also influenced by other Neapolitan masters who became famous in those years, such as Massimo Stanzione and Bernardo Cavallino. In the following years his painting turned to the Venetian and Bolognese schools. In fact, he turned away from de Ribera's tenebrism to indulge the taste for Roman and Bolognese art that was emerging in Naples. His well-known works include the "Caritas Romana" of 1635 in a private Roman collection and two versions of St. Jerome in the Desert, one in the Trafalgar Galleries in London of 1651, the other in the National Gallery of the Palazzo Barberini in Rome of 1652. De Somer produced numerous paintings featuring the saint, as did his master de Ribera, who had popularized the subject. Another key work is the altarpiece of the Baptism of Christ (Naples, Santa Maria della Sapienza) from 1641, which can be attributed with certainty to de Somer, since documentation of its commission has been preserved. There are no records of Hendrick de Somer after 1656, suggesting that he may have been one of the victims of the 1656 plague in Naples. (1330721) (13) Hendrick van Somer, 16015 - 1684/ 85 SAINT JEROME IN HIS STUDY Oil on canvas. Relined. 174 x 114 cm. The attribution is based on a confirmation by Professor Wayne E. Franits towards previous owner. His well-known works include the Caritas Romana of 1635 in a private Roman collection and two versions of Saint Jerome in the Desert, one held at Trafalgar Galleries, London from 1651, the other held at the National Gallery of the Palazzo Barberini in Rome from 1652.