Lot 2062 Dα

Works by the Antwerp painter Theodore Boeyermans appear very rarely on the art market. One reason for this is the fact that his total oeuvre was apparently rather small, coupled with the fact that his unsigned works are frequently attributed to other Flemish artists. Another reason is that Boeyermans often worked for the church and thus his paintings are often still "in situ". For example, his monumental "Assumption of the Virgin" in St. Jacob's Church in Antwerp. A number of his works are also housed in museums.
It was thus all the more interesting when this previously undiscovered large format work was found in an Italian collection. It was probably also formerly an altarpiece. Boeyerman's religious works follow the counter-reformational style that Rubens introduced north of the Alps following his return from Italy. More than Rubens, however, Boeyermans was inspired by Anthony van Dyck, who was twenty years his junior.