Alvise Vivarini

Gagliardi, Florence;
Sale, Rome, Jandolo and Ravazzi, 27 April to 2 May 1908, lot 525, reproduced pl. XXXIII;
Private collection, Avignon;
With Julius Böhler, Munich, by 1929;
Edward Hutton (1875-1959), London, by 1947;
With Wildenstein, New York, by 1982.

Munich, Julius Böhler, Austellung altvenezianischer Malerei, 1931, no. 59.

The Art News, vol. XXIX, no. 38 (July 1931), reproduced p. 18;
B. Berenson, Italian Pictures of the Renaissance:  Venetian School, London 1957, vol. I, p. 196 as Alvise Vivarini and p. 201 as Bartolomeo Vivarini;
F. Heinemann, Giovanni Bellini e i belliniani, Venice 1959, vol. I, p. 274, cat. no. V390, reproduced vol. II, p. 675, fig. 778;
J. Steer, Alvise Vivarini, His Art and Influence, Cambridge, England, 1982, pp. 59, 144, cat. no. 20 and p. 147, reproduced, p. 147, pls. 34 and 34a.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This portrait is restored, but the varnish is slightly soft and could perhaps be freshened. Reexamination of the restoration is not necessarily recommended. Under ultraviolet light, a very opaque varnish discourages clear identification of retouches. However, the bottom edge has been repainted about three quarters of an inch into the picture. Above this, there is a separate horizontal crack that has also been restored. There is a fair amount of restoration in the upper left background. There seem to be retouches in some of the hair and hat on the right. Elsewhere, there are numerous minute spots of restoration. Interestingly enough, the face seems to be quite unrestored; if one looks under magnification, it is only some slight weakness in the cheek and some of the larger cracks that seem to have received restoration.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Alvise Vivarini was the youngest member of an important family of painters active in Venice from about 1440 until the beginning of the sixteenth century.  Although his style was formed under the influence of his father, Antonio, and uncle Bartolomeo, his portraits also reflect the greater interest in light and volume seen in the works of Antonello da Messina. 

What is most consistent in his portraiture is the directness with which he presents the sitter. Steer dates the present lot to the late 1480s or early 1490s, placing it between the Portrait of a Man in the Museo Civico, Padua, and the Portrait of a Man, dated 1497, in the National Gallery, London.¹

The unfortunate restoration from the mid-twentieth century, which Steer refers to, has been removed so that the portrait now reflects Alvise's original intention.²   

1.  See Literature, p. 144.
2.  Ibid.