Lot 623 | Frans II. Francken | Crucifixion of Christ

FRANCKEN, FRANS II.
Antwerp 1581 - 1642
and associate

Title: Crucifixion of Christ.
Date: ca. 1600-1610.
Technique: Oil on copper.
Measurement: 35 x 28.5cm.
Frame/Pedestal: Framed.

Provenance:
Private ownership, Germany

Frans Francken II was a particularly versatile Flemish painter and draughtsman who painted a wide range of subjects, including religious scenes, allegories and still lifes, portraits and art collections. The artist's working methods and the distribution of his works between his studio and outdoor workshops have been studied in detail in recent decades, so that we can now get a clearer picture of the involvement of the various hands in the final product.
Two painters participated in the present painting: Frans Francken II painted the figure of Christ and probably the Magdalene, and an associate - perhaps the husband of one of the artist's daughters - painted the rest. The stylistic difference can only be seen on close inspection of the painting, as the artists who worked closely with Frans Francken II had achieved a very high level of quality.
In the extensive oeuvre of Frans Francken II, only one other version with the Crucifixion is known besides the present painting, which makes the work a valuable addition.
Due to its cabinet format, it is undoubtedly a work painted for private devotion and meditation. It was probably covered by a small curtain and there was a kneeler in front of the tabernacle on which it was displayed.
The composition was designed on the basis of contemporary prints, an exact model is not known, so that the artist could express his creativity in working out the impulses conveyed by the print. It is a typical product of the Counter-Reformation, inviting the Catholic worshippers to feel the same emotions as the figures depicted. Antwerp was a Catholic stronghold at the time of Frans Francken II, and devotional paintings, such as the present one, were in great demand as a means of mercy: St John on the right is obviously suffering, as expressed by the tear wetting his cheek. Mary is pale, mourning, her hands humbly crucified and bowed in sorrow.
According to the iconographic tradition, the image shows three nails and a four-part cross with a titulus on the short "heavenly" arm.

We are grateful to Ursula Härting, who confirmed the attribution after examining the present painting in the original, for her help in cataloguing it.