"Love for a fee"
Painting France-Flemish
Nicolas Tournier (Montbéliard 1590-Tolosa 1639)
"Love for a fee"
Oil on canvas 17th century
canvas 113 x 90 frame 135 x 112
Intriguing canvas with an exquisite finish and strongly Caravaggio tones.
It is a typical work of the famous French master Nicolas Tournier, a great portrait painter of characters shot in various circumstances but always with the marked light-dark connotations of the Caravaggesque imprint.
The skillful use of the play of light, however, recalls the works of Merisi, inevitably revealing the Flemish-inspired franchism that distinguishes Tournier's painting.
The scene is very interesting and takes up a theme common to the old Franco-Flemish painting.
The old and horrible rich woman shows the handsome young man a bag full of coins and buys her love.
The Woman's face reveals a mocking grimace and already seems to anticipate the performance of the handsome Gigolo
Her richly trimmed dresses, velvet hat and jewelry testify to her high social status.
The pictorial quality of this magnificent canvas is truly extraordinary and the considerable size increases its importance.
The painting is in excellent condition with an old relining from the end of the 19th century.
It comes with a beautiful antique gold frame