The Four Latin Fathers of the Church

1510/1515

Workshop of Valentijn van Orley

Associated Names
Valentijn van Orley

Artist, Netherlandish, 1466 - 1532

The image is a detailed sketch of four full-length figures seated in a formal setting. Each person is holding a long staff and dressed in elaborate robes with intricate patterns and layered garments. The figures have fine facial features without specific descriptions of expressions. They wear ornate headgear that includes veils and crowns resembling miters. Simple architectural elements like pillars and columns frame the gathering. In the background, there is a small tower or castle visible through an opening, adding depth to the scene. The sketch likely depicts a historical or religious context.

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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Sale, London, Sotheby's, 13 July 1972, lot 1); purchased by Ian Woodner, New York; by inheritance to his daughters, Andrea and Dian Woodner, New York, 1990.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1973

  • Woodner Collection II: Old Master Drawings from the XV to the XVIII Century, William H. Schab Gallery, New York and tour, 1973-74, no. 76.

1983

  • Master Drawings from the Woodner Collection, J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu and tour, 1983-85, no.44.

1986

  • Dibujos de los siglos XIV al XX: Colección Woodner, Museo del Prado, Madrid, 1986-87, no. 78 (as attributed to Albert Bouts).

  • Meisterzeichnungen aus Sechs Jahrhunderten: Die Sammlung Ian Woodner, Haus der Kunst, Munich and Vienna, 1986, no. 65.

1995

  • The Touch of the Artist: Master Drawings from the Woodner Collections, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1995-1996, no. 24.

2006

  • Master Drawings from the Woodner Collections, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2006 - 2007.

2017

  • The Woodner Collections: Master Drawings from Seven Centuries, NGA, 2017.

Bibliography

1974

  • Butler, Joseph T. "Old Master Drawings from the Woodner Collection II." Connoisseur 186 (1974): 56-57 (repro.).

1978

  • Boon, Karel G. Netherlandish Drawing of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries. The Hague, 1978: 2: 138.

1995

  • The Touch of the Artist: Master Drawings from the Woodner Collections. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1995-1996: no. 24.

Inscriptions

by later hand, lower left in pen and brown ink: raph / URBINA (?) by later hand, lower right in pen and brown ink: 1512 / ROMA

Wikidata ID

Q64640591

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