Geoffroy Dumonstier (att.to)

Geoffroy Dumonstier (attributed to) (Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray 1500 - Paris 1573) Clothing the Naked Pen Measurements: 95 x 185 mm A French painter, miniaturist, and draughtsman born into a family of artists primarily known as portrait painters. Towards the end of the 1530s, he worked at the Palace of Fontainebleau and was influenced by the Italian artists working there: Antonio Fantuzzi (Trento 1510 - 1570), Rosso Fiorentino (Florence 1494 - Fontainebleau 1540), and Francesco Primaticcio (Bologna 1504 - Paris 1570). The scene takes place outdoors and is enclosed within an oval. Starting from the right, an elderly man peers out from behind a column, observing the scene while leaning on his cane. In the center, two canons, appearing to be on the threshold of a building, offer a bundle of clothes to a man with his back turned, who appears elderly and humble, leaning on a cane. Behind him, two figures, including a cripple, seem to comment on the scene. In the foreground, two children: one dressed in rags reaches out towards the clothes, seemingly shouting with joy. The figures are described only through contour lines in pen, with limited use of watercolor in the shaded areas. The figures are elongated, evidently Mannerist, with soft and characteristic profiles. The subject could be interpreted as a depiction of the Work of Mercy: clothing the naked. The oval could be a study for a cycle of frescoes within elaborate stucco frames. We propose maintaining the old attribution to Dumonstier, as the debt to the manner of French artists trained at the Palace of Fontainebleau is evident; however, we do not feel confident in definitively attributing the hand with certainty. In fact, certain physiognomic characteristics, along with the use of pen without shading, for example, suggest the Cremonese area of the 16th century. Both, however, were influenced by the genius of Parmigianino. Excellent condition except for a stain in the central area of the subject. The sheet is preserved in the typical mounting of the Carlo Prayer collection (Milan 1826-1900). At the bottom right and left are stamps from the Giuseppe Vallardi collections (1784-1863) L.1223 and Carlo Prayer (1826-1900) L.2044. On the verso, cataloguing in 17th-century script in red chalk F 503 and more modern cataloguing in pencil n 41.