(Antwerp 1554–1626 Rome) and (Arpino circa 1568–1640 Rome)
A landscape with a hermit writing,
oil on canvas, 75.3 x 100 cm, framed

Provenance:
Private European collection

Literature:
F. Cappelletti (ed.), Paul Bril e la pittura di paesaggio a Roma 1580–1630, Rome 2005, under no. 86 (as Paul Bril)

This present painting represents a subject known from Bril’s earliest easel paintings: the motif of a saint in a landscape, here rendered in a prevalently ochre pallet. On the right in the background ruins can be seen, which are often employed by the artist to underscore his awareness of the monuments of ancient Rome. The opening in the undergrowth on the left is bold motif that recalls a device used by other artists during these years, most notably by Jan Brueghel (1568–1625) during his Roman period.

The present painting is datable to the early seventeenth century and can be compared to other landscapes by Bril for the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, as well as in the Palazzo Mattei di Giove, Rome, wherein a similar palette is deployed, revealing warmer tones than in his earlier paintings. The figure of the hermit has been given to Cavalier d’Arpino who was very active in Rome during this period in the production of paintings for private collectors; an example is the canvas painted by the two artists in collaboration for Cardinal Federico Borromeo, now in the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan, representing a Landscape with the hermit Muzio (see F. Cappelletti (ed.), op cit., Rome 2006, p. 233, cat. no. 41), wherein the same style is deployed to depict the figure, although in the present painting on a reduced scale.

Paul Bril was a Flemish landscape painter and engraver; he was born in Antwerp in 1554. He was likely the son of Matthijs Bril the Elder (active in sixteenth-century Antwerp) and the brother of Matthijs Bril the Younger (1550–1584). According to his biographer Karel van Mander (1548–1606) he worked in Antwerp until the age of 14, in the studio of the painter Damien Wortelmans (documented in the guild of Flemish painters from 1577 to 1589). He subsequently moved to various cities, to Breda and back to Antwerp, and then to Lyons where he remained a long time. He reached Rome in 1574 where he joined his brother Matthijs who had managed to obtain various important commissions from the Vatican. The two probably collaborated on the Scala Santa and in the series of lunettes depicting landscapes in the Lateran Palace. It was not long, however, before Paul surpassed his brother, becoming much more esteemed. He became the friend and collaborator of important celebrated artists of the period in Rome, among whom Cavalier d’Arpino and members of the Carracci family. During his long Roman sojourn, he worked for the papal court and exerted a considerable influence on other artists in the city, distinguishing himself as one of the first artists to focus specifically on landscape painting, contributing significantly to making this an independent genre.