(Pratovecchio 1592–1664 Florence)
Hagar and the Angel,
oil on canvas, 127.5 x 170 cm, framed

We are grateful to Mina Gregori for confirming the attribution of the present painting.

The present work is an example of Florentine Baroque painting with its monumental composition. Jacopo Vignali was influenced by Caravaggio and arrived at an entirely autonomous visual language which is apparent in the present picture. Vignali´s use of strong colours seem to have been influenced by the artist’s teacher, Matteo Rosselli, whereas the intensive lighting of the silky fabrics and the picture’s naturalism suggest that Vignali had travelled to Rome. The compostion depicts a wide of a naturalistically rendered landscape. The lively expression of the figures is enhanced by their gestures, which contribute to the composition’s great narrative quality which is a typical feature of Vignali’s works.

The picture depicts the scene in which an angel appears to Hagar and shows her the way to the well. Since Abraham and his wife Sarah had remained childless, Abraham lay with Hagar, an Egyptian slave. In those days it was customary that the child she had given birth to would have been considered the offspring of the childless parents, but after Sarah had given birth to her own son, Isaac, she instructed Abraham to dismiss Hagar and Ishmael. God told Abraham to do as his wife wished. After he had sent Hagar and the child away, they got lost in the desert, however when they ran out of water, an angel appeared to her and opened her eyes, leading her to a well. Eventually, Ishmael was to become the ancestor of many tribes.

Jacopo Vignali, who had been born in Pratovecchio, moved to Florence at an early age, where he became a student of Matteo Rosselli. In 1616 he enrolled at the Accademia del Disegno. In 1620 he painted the Inauguration of Saint Benedict for the Confraternita di San Benedetto Bianco. In 1622-23 he was involved in a cycle of frescoes executed for the Medici (Casino Mediceo di San Marco, Florence, and Villa di Poggio Imperiali). His most important pupil was Carlo Dolci.