Man praying

Ambrosius Benson
Netherlands
c.1495 – 1550

Man praying
late 1520s
oil on wood panel
Place made
Bruges, Flanders (Belgium)
Medium
oil on wood panel
Dimensions
45.5 x 37.5 cm
61.7 x 48.9 x 4.9 cm (frame)
Credit line
Gift of William Bowmore AO OBE through the Art Gallery of South Australia Foundation 1999
Accession number
993P16
Signature and date
Not signed. Not dated.
Provenance
Unknown provenance prior to 1933. Wildenstein & Co. by 1933; exhibited Los Angeles County Museum of Science, Art and History, Five Centuries of European Painting, a loan exhibition from Wildenstein & Co. 1933; exhibited Musee des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux; Flandres, Espagne, Portugal: du XVe au XVIIe siecle; remained with Wildenstein until at least 1960s. Jean-Francois Heim by 1982; from whom bt by Eddy Batache, Paris/Sydney, 1982; bt. William Bowmore AO OBE (1909-2008), Newcastle/Sydney, c. 1986; donated through the Art Gallery of South Australia Foundation 1999.
Media category
Painting
Collection area
European paintings

  • WALL LABEL: Facing the collection, 2022


    Italian-born, Flemish artist Ambrosius Benson remains elusive with only two works known to have been signed by his hand. Benson was a highly regarded painter of religious subjects and this work offers a glimpse into the dramatic changes in patronage and subject matter occurring in the Northern Renaissance during this period. Recent conservation studies have revealed an underdrawing of a female head and nude torso – likely a figure from an Old Testament story – which Benson has painted his portrait over. Benson’s painting offers tangible evidence of the move away from religious and historical painting (mostly commissioned by and for the Church) towards a more secular approach and the rise of individualism which can be directly linked to the rising popularity of portraiture.   

     

    Tansy Curtin, Curator of International Art Pre-1980

  • [Book] Radford, Ron. 1998. Treasures from the Art Gallery of South Australia.
  • [Journal] The Australian Magazine.
  • [Book] Marlier, Georges. 1957. Ambrosius Benson et la Peinture a Bruges au temps de Charles-Quint. 343.
  • [Book] Radford, Ron. 1999. Fine Art of Giving: 90 Masterpieces from the William Bowmore Collection.