Oil painting on table

37 x 27 cm.

In frame 52 x 42 cm.

The subject illustrated in this refined painting is taken from the Gospel of John (4: 6-10), where it is told of Jesus who, tired from the journey to Galilee, asked a Samaritan woman, notoriously averse to a Jew, to offer him a drink there. water from Jacob's well, promising her in exchange a water capable of quenching her thirst for eternity.

The theme (one of the most frequently used in Counter-Reformation Christian art) celebrated the main concepts of the Council of Trent: the encounter with the Samaritan woman has the symbolic meaning of the innovation brought by Christ who offers the good news even to those who are not considered pure Jew. Even the place of the event, rather unusual and certainly not religious, according to biblical tradition, was rich in meanings and historical salvific evocations.

The scene takes place within a landscape depicting, according to the New Testament tale, the city of Sicar, the place where the Samaritan woman will arrive to announce the coming of the new Messiah.

A strong Flemish influence can be glimpsed in these compositions, very likely for Venetian artists given the massive presence in the lagoon city during the sixteenth century of artists from Flanders and the Netherlands, whose art made of a strong culture for minute details comes here combined with the Venetian colorism and the plastic turning of the typical figures of the art of central-northern Italy of those years.

In particular, we are inclined to attribute the work to Ludovico Pozzoserrato, Italianization of Lodewyk Toeput (Antwerp, about 1550 - Treviso, 1605).

Originally from Antwerp, he arrived in Venice around 1582, with short stays also in Florence and Rome. The pictorial value of him is well highlighted by the critical and commercial fortune reached early in the lagoon city, facilitated by a talent capable of adapting his Nordic training to the Venetian landscape, reaching a synthesis of rare skill and sensitivity. We can also say that Ludovico was able to grasp the 'international' character of the elegant and cultured mannerism of Jacopo Tintoretto and Paolo Veronese, who will find in him a very talented interlocutor.

The conservation conditions of the work appear very good.

The painting is sold together with a nice golden frame.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The work is sold with a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic card.

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It is also possible to see the painting in the Riva del Garda gallery, we will be happy to welcome you to show you our collection of works.

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