Flemish school of the seventeenth century. Circle... Lot n° 82

Flemish school of the seventeenth century. Circle or workshop of ANTON VAN DYCK (Antwerp, 1599-London, 1641). "The three eldest sons of Charles I of England". Oil on canvas. Re-drawn circa 1950. Frame of the 19th century. Size: 140 x 157 cm; 167 x 186 cm (frame). The portraits that Anton van Dyck painted of the children of King Charles I of England reached great popularity among the artists of the seventeenth century, who, taking as a reference such exceptional works of the Flemish master, made numerous copies faithful to the original model. The outstanding work that concerns us becomes a faithful reflection of "The three eldest sons of Charles I of England", a canvas painted by Van Dyck between November 1635 and March 1636, now preserved in the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle, an extraordinary testimony of the mastery of the Antwerp painter, this time captured by the impeccable technique of a painter of his circle or workshop. The royal portrait shows Charles II, Mary and James II, the three eldest children of Charles I and his wife Henrietta Maria of France, together with two King Carles Spaniel dogs. Arranged in a palatial interior determined by the luxurious fabrics of the tapestries and carpets that dress the room, Van Dyck shows the three little ones full-length. The little James II dresses like a girl, which is understandable considering that, during the 17th century, it was customary for boys and girls to dress alike until they were five or six years old. A year earlier, in 1635, Van Dyck had painted a portrait of the same three little boys, which was intended to be sent to the queen's sister, Christina. However, the fact that on that occasion Charles II also wore skirts was something that did not please the king of England himself, so the artist painted a second group portrait of the same three children, this time with Prince Charles wearing pants. Charles I of England was, among the English sovereigns of the past, the one who most appreciated pictorial art, and always showed himself to be a strong patron and protector of artists. Although the monarch's favorite painter was Titian, Charles I saw in the Antwerp painter his heir: with Van Dyck, Charles had finally found the court painter he had desired for years. In April 1632, Van Dyck arrived for the second time in England. Welcomed with full honors, he was presented to the king, whom he had met years earlier as Prince of Wales, and stayed in London. During his stay in the English capital, Van Dyck portrayed numerous characters of the court and the petty nobility, but also members of the royal family. This production was so massive that Van Dyck had to resort to the collaboration of assistants, who generally painted the secondary elements such as backgrounds and clothing. Those who commissioned the works were often represented in full figure, as in the case of the Portrait of Lord John and Lord Bernard Stuart, but also seated or only half bust, as in the portrait Dorothy Savage. The character who appears most often in the portraits painted by Van Dyck is undoubtedly Charles I Stuart, King of England and his patron-protector. Van Dyck represented him with his family, as a couple with his wife Henrietta and above all alone. The paintings are of various formats and the sovereign is represented in different poses: on horseback, as in the case of Charles I on horseback, full-length as in the Portrait of Charles I hunting, half bust as in King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria and also in other positions, as in the Triple portrait of Charles I, later sent to Rome, to Bernini's workshop. The most ambitious of the portraits of Charles I is the equestrian portrait in which the sovereign appears in the company of his riding master.