MASTERPIECES FROM THE GOTHIC TO THE RENAISSANCE Alberto Velasco Gonzàlez 1 4 MASTERPIECES FROM THE GOTHIC TO THE RENAISSANCE (1350-1550) Alberto Velasco Gonzàlez Galería Bernat Barcelona-Madrid 2020 4 MASTERPIECES FROM GOTHIC TO RENAISSANCE Contents Journey through the works: Hispanic painting th th from the 14 to the 16 century. 8 CATALOGUE JAUME CASCALLS Mourner . 28 JOAN DAURER Saint Margaret . 34 GONÇAL PERIS SARRIÀ Saint Catherine of Alexandria’s Debate with the Pagan Sages . 40 THE MASTER OF SAINT BARTHOLOMEW Epiphany . 46 JOAN REIXAC Mary Magdalene . 52 JOAN REIXAC Mary Magdalene . 58 JUAN SÁNCHEZ DE SAN ROMÁN Christ on the Way to Calvary . 64 CIRCLE OF FERNANDO GALLEGO St . Catherine of Alexandria’s Debate with the Pagan Sages . 70 CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF CASTELSARDO Calvary . 76 FRANCESC DE OSONA Deposition of Christ Burial of Christ . 82 MASTER OF VALENCIA DE DON JUAN The Beheading of St . John the Baptist . 90 MASTER OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST Feast of Herod . 96 PAOLO DE SAN LEOCADIO Virgin and Child with the Infant St . John . 102 JUAN DE BORGOÑA AND WORKSHOP Calvary with the Mass of St . Gregory . .. 108 MIQUEL RAMELLS AND GUIOT BORGONYÓ Birth of the Virgin . 114 Bibliography. 120 Textos en castellano . 127 FOREWORD Dear friends, e are both delighted and excited to publish this new catalogue with the Galería Bernat’s latest acquisitions. In spite of the unfortunate times we W are all going through, and the uncertain days that lie ahead, our challenge is to study all of our works in great depth, and it is our wish to share the results of that study with you. The works making up this catalogue span the period between 1350 and 1550. This is a journey through the varying periods of Hispanic painting, from the Gothic to the early Renaissance, not to mention our inclusion of an exceptional piece of sculpture. The Gallery specialises in medieval and Renaissance art, but our aesthetic vision is a contemporary one, and from the outset we have also collaborated in the dissemination of modern art, with the Piramidón, Centro de Arte Contemporáneo project. This catalogue is not just intended for collectors and lovers of antique art, it is aimed at all art lovers, whatever their preferred period. Our wish is for everyone to appreciate these works that are full of power, beauty, symbolism and quality. At a time when many collections are embracing eclecticism (the mixture of works from different 6 MASTERPIECES FROM GOTHIC TO RENAISSANCE intro periods and styles), we firmly believe that this combination is enriching, and enables us to establish a dialogue between all works of art. Research, study and the correct cataloguing of works of art is paramount to what we do. We must therefore express our deepest thanks to Alberto Velasco, for the herculean efforts he has made in the conception and materialization of the catalogue, as well as his exhaustive study of all the works. This has made it possible, in the light of the latest publications, to update some previous attributions and locate studies including references to the works. He has also been of great help in the selection of the works, lending coherence to this exhibition. We have put great dedication and effort into obtaining unparalleled quality in the photographs illustrating the catalogue, which may also be consulted on our website. We are currently living through a time when it would appear the general trend is moving towards online exhibitions and sales. And yet we continue to think that the emotion and discovery of the finer nuances may only be felt by contemplating works in situ. As such, we warmly invite you to visit our gallery spaces in Madrid and Barcelona, so that you can appreciate and enjoy the works in the fullness of their expression. José Alavedra and Marc Comerma 7 Journey through the works: Hispanic painting from the 14th to the 16th century ith this catalogue, the Bar- Our journey starts with the only piece of celona and Madrid-based sculpture in the catalogue, a Mourner (cat. 1) Galería Bernat has managed originating, as we have just mentioned, from to unite an impressive co- the pantheon the monarchs of the Crown of Wllection of works from the 14th to the 16th cen- Aragon installed in one of the most important tury, many previously unpublished, which monasteries in the kingdom, Santa María de enable us to reconstruct little chapters in the Poblet (Tarragona). The idea for the pantheon history of medieval art and the early Renaiss- was conceived of by King Peter the Ceremoni- ance across the Hispanic kingdoms. Some are ous in the mid-14th century, and he commis- of great importance, either due to their excep- sioned the best sculptors working in Catalonia tional provenance, as is the case of the Mourner at the time, Aloi de Montbrai and Jaume Cas- from the royal pantheon of the monastery of calls, with the intention of creating a dynastic Poblet (cat. 1), or because they make a signif- memorial to lend prestige to the royal house. icant contribution to the catalogue of an artist It is specifically to Cascalls that the Mourner with few surviving works, as with the St. Mar- should be attributed, for obvious stylistic rea- garet by the Mallorcan painter Joan Daurer (cat. sons. Poblet is a monastery with a particularly 2). Others are simply the work of artists with chequered history, marked by the 1835 confis- long and fruitful artistic careers by which they cation, which opened the floodgates for the have been consecrated as landmark figures dispersal of most of its artistic heritage. The in the historiography of Hispanic art, as is the pantheon was one of the most affected parts, case of Gonçal Peris (cat. 3), Joan Reixac (cats. 5 subject to systematic destruction and pillage and 6), Paolo de San Leocadio (cat. 13) and Juan up until the early 20th century1. The varying de Borgoña (cat. 14). To this we should add that fragments that have appeared on the market many of these works were circulating on the in- over the years are the result of those particu- ternational art market or in foreign collections, lar circumstances2. As well as the works pre- so their acquisition and return to Spain is al- served in the monastery’s own museum, there ways good news from a heritage point of view. are mourners or fragments from tombs in the 1 TODA 1935a; FORT 1979; BASSEGODA 1983; GONZALVO 2005. 2 ESPAÑOL 1999; BARRACHINA 2002, pp. 32-34; VELASCO 2011; MATA 2013. 8 MASTERPIECES FROM GOTHIC TO RENAISSANCE intro Musée du Louvre, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Loyola University Museum of Art, Spen- cer Museum of Art, Staatliche Museen zu Ber- lin, Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (Bar- celona), Museu Diocesà de Tarragona and the Museu Frederic Marès (Barcelona), to name but a few. To these we should add the vari- ous fragments that have appeared on the art market in recent years, which both in terms of their material (alabaster) and style might have originated there. This is the case of a mourner that Brimo de Laroussilhe exhibited at TEFAF-Maastricht some years ago, which we would personally link to Jaume Cascalls (fig. 1)3. Nothing is known of its provenance, but the same artist should also be linked to a fragment with two clerics that was undoubt- edly part of a relief depicting the funeral rites ceremony, which came up for sale in London (Sam Fogg, 2015) (fig. 2). As we mention in the corresponding study, the most significant dis- covery is the appearance of a previously un- published Mourner from the same tomb as the one studied in this catalogue, which was pre- sented at the FAMA fair in Barcelona in 2020 (Palau Antiguitats) (fig. 3)4. Unfortunately, all that is left today of that im- pressive ensemble of works is the attempt at restoration and restitution undertaken by the sculptor Frederic Marès in the mid-20th cen- tury. Saying that, its original image can be evoked through the physical elements that have survived, and also by the testimony left 3 VELASCO 2012a. 4 Although they fall outside our chronological timeframe, we should add two fragments from the tomb of John II and his wife Juana Enríquez, commissioned by Ferdinand the Catholic from the Aragonese sculptor Gil Morlanes, who executed it in around 1493-99 (for more on this tomb, see ARCO 1945, p. 410 et passim.; ESPAÑOL 1999, pp. 96-98; MORTE 2018, p. 51). One of these (Barcelona, private collection) shows a mourner hold- ing an upside-down shield (signalling mourning) with the coat of arms of King John (the arms of Aragon and Sicily), while the second (Barcelona, Artur Ramon) may easily be attribut- Fig. 1. Jaume Cascalls, Mourner. ed to the style of said master. The late chronology of these Paris, Brimo de Laroussilhe. fragments clearly demonstrates the funerary function of the royal pantheon was still in effect. Fig. 2. Jaume Cascalls, Mourners. Fig. 3. Jaume Cascalls, Mourner. London, Sam Fogg. Barcelona, Palau Antiguitats. by a number of scholars and travellers, as is most important ones entombed there. They the case of the Mallorcan Bernat Josep Olives are made of white marble with gemstones of de Nadal (1678-1715), who in 1701 wrote a des- different colours, with the clothes and fabrics cription identifying the series of tombs and of the day, and by their names they are the which, due to the interest it holds, we tran- following. scribe here, adding it to those already known: On the arch on the Gospel side, going down “Between* the Choir and the main Chapel, on the altar, the following words: one side and another of the main nave, are the royal tombs, constituting little rooms where 1.