Lot 224: Johann Andreas Wolf (Munich 1652 - 1716) Mary

Johann Andreas Wolf (Munich 1652 - 1716) Mary Magdalene consoled by an angel, oil on canvas, 109 x 78 cm, framed, (Wo) Without reserve This unconventional depiction shows Mary Magdalene almost naked, resting on a plain cot underneath a tree. The saint's features express remorse about her extravagant life. The artist created a deliberate contrast between Mary Magdalene's lap, which his emphasised and eroticised by the influx of light, and the minutely rendered skull as a symbol of vanitas appearing in this very place. The figure's softly shimmering flesh, rich curls, and relaxed pose stress the traditional sensuality of her appearance. The subject of an angel consoling a penitent saint was introduced in Italian painting around 1600. The figure type, colours, chiaroscuro, and drapery, as well as the texture of the angel's wings, are suggestive of the Munich court painter Johann Andreas Wolf. For comparison see his altarpieces The Birth of Christ (1700) and St. John the Evangelist Presenting the Euchar st to the Virgin Mary (1716), which were shown in the exhibition Mit Kalkül und Leidenschaft in Landshut in 2004. In spite of his employment at the Munich court, Wolf's oeuvre is dominated by religious subjects; the paintings in the monasteries of Kremsmünster and Göttweig can be considered his masterpieces. The present picture can be said to be a link between religious and profane subject matter (saint and female nude) and was probably not destined for a church interior, but for the picture gallery of an aristocratic or clerical art lover.