(Maubeuge 1591–1667 Venice)
The Fortune Teller
oil on canvas, 106.5 x 137.5 cm, framed

Provenance:
Private European collection

The present composition derives from The Fortune Teller by Bartolomeo Manfredi, conserved in the Detroit Institute of Arts. The strong blue of the soothsayer’s dress however is atypical of Manfredi and it bears a strong resemblance to colouring used by Nicolas Regnier. The old woman and the soothsayer’s faces are also reminiscent of Regnier´s painting of the same subject in Musée du Louvre, Paris.

Nicolas Regnier was the pupil of Abraham Janssens and one of the northern painters in Rome during Caravaggio’s lifetime, and started his career in an atelier in Antwerp and was recorded in Rome between June 1621 and 1625 though he may well have arrived there as early as 1615. In his Roman paintings he was influenced by Bartolomeo Manfredi and their styles can be so close that some works have been misattributed. Joachim von Sandrart stated in his Teutsche Academie of 1675–79 that in Italy Regnier followed the method of Manfredi. Sandrart, who met Regnier, also reported that he became a member of Vincenzo Giustiniani’s household. Regnier served as Giustiniani’s official painter, and as many as nine of his works are recorded in the Giustiniani collection. In Rome Regnier was also in close contact with other French Caravaggist painters including Simon Vouet.

Provenance:
Private European collection

The present composition derives from The Fortune Teller by Bartolomeo Manfredi, conserved in the Detroit Institute of Arts. The strong blue of the soothsayer’s dress however is atypical of Manfredi and it bears a strong resemblance to colouring used by Nicolas Regnier. The old woman and the soothsayer’s faces are also reminiscent of Regnier´s painting of the same subject in Musée du Louvre, Paris.

Nicolas Regnier was the pupil of Abraham Janssens and one of northern painters in Rome during Caravaggio’s lifetime, and started his career in Antwerp atelier and was recorded in Rome between June 1621 and 1625 but he may well have arrived there as early as 1615. In his Roman paintings he was influenced by Bartolomeo Manfredi and their styles can be so close that some works have been misattributed. Joachim von Sandrart stated in his Teutsche Academie of 1675–79 that in Italy Regnier followed the method of Manfredi. Sandrart, who met Regnier, also reported that he became a member of Vincenzo Giustiniani’s household. Regnier served as Giustiniani’s official painter, and as many as nine of his works are recorded in the Giustiniani collection. In Rome Regnier was also in close contact with other French Caravaggist painters including Simon Vouet.