ONOFRE FALCÓ

(Activo en Valencia entre 1536 y 1560)

ONOFRE FALCÓ (Active in Valencia between 1536 and 1560) "Martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist" and "Salome presents the head of the Baptist to Herodias"

Pair of oil paintings on panel. Reference bibliography: - GÓMEZ FRECHINA, J., "Onofre Falcó, a Spanish Renaissance master", in Colnaghi Studies, Journal - 03, Oct. 2018, pp. 179-200; - GÓMEZ FERRER, M., “The Falcós, a family of painters in 16th-century Valencia”, Locus Amoenus, 11, 2011-2012, pp. 79-96. Belonging to an important dynasty of artists, Onofre Falcó is one of the most relevant figures in 16th-century Valencian painting. His importance is evident in the fact that his workshop was one of the highest taxpayers and that he held the positions of painter to the Generalitat (the Valencian regional government) and the City of Valencia. His output, however, is not very large, although it has increased considerably in recent years with some works appearing on the art market. Among his best-known paintings are some panels from the main altarpiece of the parish church of San Esteban in Valencia, a commission shared with, or rather completed by, Juan de Juanes. Painted around 1560, they display the artist's most evolved style and are now divided between the aforementioned church and the Prado Museum, where the panel depicting "Saint Stephen ordained as Deacon" is located. The pair of panels presented here exhibit a slightly more archaic style than the aforementioned works, although we can find the painter's typical human figures, his characteristic color palette, similar to that of Juanes, and a similar approach to composition. It is worth noting the parallel between the model of King Herod depicted in these panels and some of the male figures in the background of the Prado painting. The same can be said of the executioner's distinctive foreshortening, which has a close parallel in the figure of the henchman on the left of the panel of the Reproaches in the parish church of San Esteban in Valencia. The remote origin of these paintings is unknown, although it is clear that they formed part of an altarpiece dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. It is known that Onofre Falcó carried out some commissions for the parish church of Santos Juanes in Valencia, although we have no evidence to confirm that these paintings originated there. José Gómez Frechina also supports the attribution of these paintings to Onofre Falcó. Dimensions: 58 x 56.5 cm each