John of Flanders

JOHN OF FLANDERS ( Netherlands, 1465 - Palencia, 1519).
"St. Peter.
Oil on panel.
Attached study by Don Juan Maria Quesada.
Measurements: 40 x 32 cm; 64 x 62 cm (frame).
In the study by Juan María Quesada, the expert points out that this piece was conceived as part of the predella of a high, thus deducing that both the format and the composition of the painted scene are a consequence of that motif. In fact, the style and subject matter show that the piece is probably part of a series of narrative character, where several saints are represented individually. In the work, the figure of a saint can be seen inscribed in an illuminated niche on the right, in such a way that the three-dimensionality and volume are clearly defined despite the neutrality of the background. The face of the protagonist, slightly rotated in three quarters, helps to enhance the spatial sensation of the work and shows the mastery of the author. The keys and the book carried by the saint indicate that it is St. Peter, it is interesting how the artist has introduced these elements in the composition, as St. Peter extends his right hand creating a delicate trompe l'oeil, as the hand exceeds the space of the niche. From his little finger hang the keys that are suspended in a subtle and elegant way. In the case of the figure, the angular folds of his Dominican habit, the iridescent colors and the face with thin and tight lips bring us closer to the master Juan de Flandes, in fact, in the University Chapel of Salamanca are preserved a Saint Apollonia and Saint Mary Magdalene painted by the artist that present a great stylistic and compositional similarity.
Juan de Flandes, who was a Flemish painter active in Spain from 1496 to 1519. His real name is unknown, although an inscription "Juan Astrat" on the back of one work suggests a name such as "Jan van der Straat". Jan Sallaert, who became a master in Ghent in 1480, has also been suggested. He worked in the early Netherlandish style. He may have been born around 1460 somewhere in Flanders. He evidently trained in his home country, most likely in Ghent, as his work shows similarities to that of Joos van Wassenhove, Hugo van der Goes and other Ghent artists. He is only documented after he became an artist at the court of Queen Isabella I of Castile, where he is first mentioned in the accounts of 1496. He is described as a "court painter" in 1498 and continued in the queen's service until his death in 1504. He painted mostly portraits of the royal family, but also most of a large series of small panels for a polyptych altarpiece of the queen. The panels have been dispersed and the largest number of panels are in the royal collection in Madrid.
After the death of Queen Isabella in 1504, Juan de Flandes turned to ecclesiastical commissions from Spanish churches, beginning in Salamanca in 1505-1507. He later settled in Palencia, where there is a large altarpiece in the cathedral. The vast majority of his work in collections outside Spain dates from the latter period, during which he concentrated on religious themes. The panels of a large altarpiece in a Palencia church are divided between the Prado and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, which have four panels each. His works show the early Netherlandish style of Ghent adapted to Spanish taste and landscape, particularly the requirements for groups of compartmentalized scenes for retablos.