CIRCLE OF PERINO DEL VAGA | THE HOLY FAMILY WITH THE INFANT SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST

With Galerie Leo Schidlof (according to a label on the backboard)

This red chalk composite study of the Holy family with Saint John the Baptist is preparatory for the painting attributed to Perino del Vaga at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (fig.1).¹ 

The drawing is highly finished and squared for transfer in red chalk. It is rendered with a mixture of spontaneity and precision and there are a number of interesting differences with the final painted version. Starting with the figure of St. Joseph, at the far right of the drawing, both of his hands are positioned differently to the final panel painting. His left hand is touching his beard and he is in fact resting his chin on his hand. In the painting St Joseph's hand is more elongated and outstretched with his head in a more upright position. The right hand of the Madonna, touching the Christ Child, is also less elongated, and rests below the Child's arm in order to embrace his body. The cheek of the Christ Child is plumper, his gaze focusing on the bird in his hand, with its wings closed. It is easier, in the drawing, to see the small hand gripping the body of the bird which is trying to escape. Finally, the veil on the head of the Madonna falls rather differently over her head in the drawing. There are other minor differences, but it seems apparent that though both painting and drawing are executed by the same hand, the artist in question is more capable of various nuances and delicate passages in the use of the chalk, giving a spontaneity to the present sheet which is somehow partially lost in the handsome painting.

The artist has clearly laid out the sections to be transferred and has concentrated on the interactions between the holy figures which harmonise the composition and make it very appealing, especially as a private devotional image. Whilst there are a number of similar painted compositions executed by Perino, in terms of the configuration of the Madonna, St Joseph and the Christ Child, it is interesting to note that the inclusion of the foreshortened Saint John the Baptist, at the lower left of the painting, is not a common feature in Perino's oeuvre. 

1. The Holy Family with the Infant Saint John the Baptist, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Accession no. 2011.26)