Birth of St. John the Baptist

Valentin Lefèvre

1642 Brussels - 1682 Venice

Pen and brown ink, brown wash over black chalk. Squared-up.
Sheet size: 37.2 x 18.3 cm.

Subtle, detailed drawing 'in terms of composition typical of Veronese's painting' (Julian Stock, 1980).

This is a well-known, repeatedly published example of Valentin Lefèvre's draughtsmanship.

Provenance:
Christie's London, 29. November 1977, Lot 92;
Collection Massimo Brooke, Yorkshire

Literature:
Julian Stock; Disegni veneti di collezioni inglesi, Fondazione Cini, Venice 1980, exh. cat. no. 54.
Ugo Ruggeri; Drawings by Valentin Lefèvre. Master Drawings, 1988, 4, p. 347. cat. no. 57, ill. 31.
Ugo Ruggeri; Valentin Lefèvre. Dipinti, disegni, incisioni, Merigo 2001, p. 181, cat. no. D 122 ill.

Bought by a museum, Northern America.