Pittore lombardo veneto del XV secolo, Coppia... Lot n° 142

This pair of gilded panels was probably originally part of a richer ensemble, perhaps a polyptych. The depiction of the two saints can be traced back to a Lombard-Venetian context, which in Italy in the first half of the 15th century was still very much affected by the legacy of International Gothic and the last influences of Byzantine culture. Soon thereafter, the first Renaissance experiments would completely change the way of perceiving the body, space, and nature in painting. This pair thus represents one of the last offshoots of the traditional representation of saints on a gold background, interpreted in the light of the experiences of northern Italy. The painter, who here looks to Gentile da Fabriano's sacred spatiality and Bonifacio Bembo's construction of bodies, depicts St. Mary Magdalene on one side, recognizable by the jar of ointments she carries, while on the other side we find St. Catherine of Alexandria. Here the saint is depicted according to a rare iconography, dressed in royal robes and armed with the sword with which she pierces the head of Emperor Maxentius, who lies at her feet. Great preciousness to this cusped panel is given by the exquisite gilded cymatium with pointed arch and tracery, which enriches the pictorial decoration without weighing it down. Painted on wood, 106x39 cm cad.