The Macip family's workshop in 16th-century Valencia revolutionised the production of devotional art. Under Vicent Macip and Joan de Joanes, they generated multiple versions of religious icons, balancing economic success with innovation and tradition.
The Macip workshop in 16th-century Valencia was renowned for its productive prolificacy, due to a ceaseless and extended artistic activity that spanned nearly a century. As was common in other European workshops, the Macip frequently resorted to mechanical repetitions of certain successful models to maintain a stock for public sale. This strategy was analogous to that of many other pictorial workshops, which, facing a growing demand for serialised devotional works, sought mechanisms to become more expedient centres. These works constituted a sort of greatest hits repertoire stamped with the workshop's brand (Herrero-Cortell, 2018:87-93). This trend, initiated when Vicent Macip led the workshop, would increase under the direction of Joan de Joanes.
In this saga, it's worth noting a credited catalogue of 'multiple originals'; works of which dozens of versions of comparable quality are known, including many iconic paintings that flourished in pre-counter-reformation Spain: Immaculates, Ecce Homos, Dolorosas, Eucharistic Saviours, etc. In such paintings, intended for private devotion, the masters found, on one hand, a solution to increase the supply; on the other, a way to reduce working time by constantly using the same patterns –which, through repetition, the craftsmen knew almost by heart. It was also a way to amortise the role of officials and apprentices, who assimilated the master's language and thus consolidated their style by practising on less critical works. The numerous Nursing Virgins, developed in the family workshop, following a trend that had vigorously grown in Valencia at the beginning of the 16th century (Ferrer-Benito, 2020:134-139), and that would continue to grow until the beginning of the next century, perpetuating in the circle of Joan de Joanes (Herrero-Cortell -Puig, 2017:55).
Specifically, there is a typology of Virgo lactans model [1] with curious characteristics, of similar dimensions and finishes, of which dozens of examples are known. This scene depicts the Virgin holding the Child who, with the aid of Saint John and an angel, grips the allegorical wood of the Passion. The various preserved examples constitute a puzzling category that enjoyed unusual dispersion in Valencian territory (Herrero-Cortell -Puig, 2017). Assuming such panels as works from the Macip workshop environment, one could accept the "persistence of the archetype" already noted by various authors.
However, attributions within the Macip circle are often indistinctly given to the father, the son, or even the grandson, to the workshop, or to an undefined "circle". Unlike the case for other serial works considered to have emerged from the workshop, there is no historiographical consensus regarding attribution here. This seems justified by qualitative differences that would set some examples apart from others. Thus, authorships such as Miquel Joan Porta, Master of Alzira, or even Martín Gómez the Elder have been proposed (Mateo Gómez, 1990). The confusion regarding the affiliation of these examples basically lies in three aspects. Firstly, the historical confusion between the personalities of Vicent and Joan, secondly, not having correctly placed the genesis of the prototype –which seems too Joanesque to be the father's work and too archaic to be the son's–. Lastly, the lack of a coherent explanation to justify the significant qualitative differences among known examples, exacerbated by an uncontrolled proliferation of late copies –some of poor quality–, a consequence of the type's own fortune.
Let's start with a chronological proposal for the model. Considering its formal characteristics: the vigour of the figures, their volumes, the proportions of shoulders, arms, and limbs, and their movement and spatial configuration, it's unlikely that Vicent Macip originated the prototype. The compositional design is undeniably Joanesque, with figures featuring broad scapulas, small ears, and straight noses; garments with puffed sleeves and abundant folds. Modally, it seems to be from the early '30s as the presence of belated disciform halos would attest. The model would therefore belong to one of the most neglected periods of Joan de Joanes' production: the initial years of his activity in the family workshop, still under his father's direction (Herrero-Cortell -Puig, 2021:441-468). Following a hypothetical trip to Italy and from the beginning of the 1530s –due to the Segorbe commission–, Joanes' role in the paternal workshop was increasing. His skills as a draftsman –superior to those of his father– his involvement in compositional definition, in the creation of models, and in the fixation of types represented a stimulating spur that, with a breath of renewal, shook the stylistic and technical precepts governing the family workshop.
The proliferation of this model [1], of unequal qualities, must be explained beyond the simple idea of the type's 'fortune', which we obviously acknowledge, but not as the sole cause of its diffusion.
Documentation on these works is very sparse, as they were available for direct sale in the workshop, or were agreed upon with a partial payment, without formalising a contract, as these were considered 'lesser' works (Herrero-Cortell -Puig, 2017:54). The model varied, subject to updates and iconographic adaptations that allowed it to adjust, for example, to the whimsical whims of devout commissioners. Orders could range from a Virgin with the Child, or Nursing Virgin, to Holy Families, or Virgins with Saint Johns, or more varied compositions that included other saints [2], or even angelic courts, as evidenced in the 1656 inventory of Constantino Cernesio, Count of Parcent ("a painting of the Nursing Virgin with the Child in her arms, Saint Joseph and many angels"; López Azorín, 2006:115-118). Often, the panel could constitute the central panel of devotional triptychs, in which the side doors were reserved for other characters. But the issue is especially complex, since the variety of works adapted to the tastes of the commissioners –emerging from the Macip workshop– must be added to an uncontrolled proliferation of popular copies, of varying fortune and quality; imitations perpetuated in the hands of epigones outside the workshop, as suggested by the example from Culla [3], of more popular craftsmanship.
In iconographic terms, it's worth noting the humanization of the Virgin in the Lactans type since the late Middle Ages, with the desire to present her as an ideal of wife and mother (Castiñeyra, 2019:129-159), thus responding to a renewed spiritual need, much more individual and intimate, which would enhance a significant private devotional practice, generating a high demand for small works for these purposes. Other authors have already delved into the diffusion of this iconography in Valencian lands (Herrero-Cortell -Puig, 2017; Ferrer-Benito, 2020).
Iconographic precedents in the Macip workshop for the model we are studying include the Virgin with the Child and Saint John among angels with instruments of the Passion (private collection in Valencia, previously coll. Hartmann, Barcelona: Saralegui, 1934:26-28; Gracia, 1974:74), the version where Saint Joseph is added, the Holy Family with Saint John and angels carrying the symbols of the Passion (private collection in Barcelona: Díaz Padrón-Padrón Mérida, 1997:fig.12), the panel at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (Ferrer-Benito, 2020:fig.1), and perhaps in the Holy Family of the Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando which, although considered polarly as one of the first youthful works of Joanes (Benito, 2000:212) or already of maturity (Albi, 1979, II:228-229), we believe more feasible that it is from the mid-century, very close to the Onda altarpiece.
These models from the Macip workshop seem to receive direct influences from the works of Fernando de Llanos (Herrero-Cortell -Puig, 2017), and all, perhaps, from a prototype conceived by Paolo da San Leocadio.
However, it was Joan de Joanes who finished shaping and combining the iconography of the Holy Family of his predecessor with the Nursing Virgin, giving rise to one of the most famous devotional icons of Valencian painting of the 16th century. The iconographic mode of the Child holding the cross would also be used by Joanes in other works, such as in the Mystical Marriage of the Venerable Agnesio at the Museum of Valencia or in the Virgin of Loreto in the Perdigó collection in Barcelona.
The iconographic fortune of this devotional typology of Nursing Virgins is evident due to the large number of preserved works. Below, we will present the versions, or iconographic types, that we have located. The differences among them cannot be explained as the result of a simple linear evolution of the model in the workshop, but rather, as the outcome of the coexistence of alternative proposals, in response to the diverse tastes, needs, or economic capacity of the clientele. The characters primarily combined and used are the three members of the Holy Family: the Virgin, the Child, and Saint Joseph (of advanced or mature age), Saint John the Baptist as a child, an angel holding the cross, and more occasionally, Saint John the Evangelist as a child, although, as we anticipated, this is not a closed composition.
The Virgin with the Child and an Angel. On this occasion, and exceptionally, the angel shows us with the other hand a chalice, a symbol of the Passion.
[1a] Nursing Virgin, 50 x 35 cm, Church of San Miguel Arcángel, Burjassot (Arnau, 1999:52-53).
The most successful composition. Composed of the same protagonists as the previous one, with the addition of Saint John the Baptist as a child.
Nursing Virgin with the Child Jesus, Saint John the Baptist as a child, and an angel
[1b] González Martí Collection, Valencia. Attributed to Martín Gómez the Elder or Master of Alcira (Mateo, 1990:30-31, fig.6). Albi considers it the oldest of these versions and a "workshop job", dating it around 1520 (1979, I:115-117, pl.VIII).
[1c] Museum of Fine Arts Valencia, inv.194, 56.4x43.3 cm. (Saralegui, 1931: 347-350). Albi considers it twin to the one in the González Martí coll., and that "it is nothing more than a vulgar workshop job, of those that must have been produced in series", dating it after 1525 (1979, I:117-118, pl.IX). It comes from the convent of San Agustín de Xàtiva (Benito-Galdón, 1997:210).
[1d] Private collection, 62.4x54.4 cm.
[1e] Balclis (Barcelona), 27/2/2014 (lot 1178), 63x54.5 cm.
[1f] Christie’s (New York), 29/1/1999 (lot 195), 61x50.5cm.
[1g] Private collection, 61.5x52 cm. Unpublished.
[1h] Work located at Feriarte (Madrid) in 2009. Whereabouts unknown.
[1i] Private collection. Auctioned at Abalarte, n.32, 3-4/12/2019 (lot.76), 58x48 cm.
With two changes compared to the previous version. The figure of the angel is replaced by that of Saint Joseph, with the facial features of a mature-aged man. The group is joined by Saint John the Evangelist as a child.
Nursing Virgin with the Child Jesus, Saint Joseph, and the young Saints John
[1j] Private collection (Bilbao), 59x45.5 cm, c.1550-1560 (Company-Puig, 2011).
[1k] Private collection (Barcelona), 84x67 cm. Almost an exact copy of the previous one. Fernando Benito attributes it to Vicente Joan Macip (2000:253).
[1l] Collection of the Heirs of Jaime Pomares (Alicante). Albi comments that "it is not by Joanes' hand". He proposes a dating post-1575 and would not be "surprised" if it were painted by Margarita, one of Joanes' daughters (1979, II:241-242, pl.CCVII).
[1m] León Collection (Tortosa) (Mateo, 2002:54-55, fig.7).
[1n] Alcoy City Council, 67x55 cm. A later copy by some follower, as it does not replicate the composition made in the Macip workshop. Likely from the end of the 16th century or beginning of the 17th, due to its colour scheme and landscape type (cf. Navarro, 2011: 232-233).
[1o] Museum of Fine Arts (Castellón), 64x54 cm. With the young Saint John the Evangelist removed, (Codina, 1946:44, n.150, fig.8).
Solo conocemos dos ejemplares, cuya única diferencia respecto a la anterior, es la presencia, de nuevo, del ángel que sujeta la cruz en lugar de San José.
Virgen de la Leche con el Niño Jesús, un ángel, los santos juanitos
[1p] The State Hermitage Museum (San Petersburgo), 57x70,5 cm. H.1550-1570. Adquirida por la State Museum Fund. en 1922, procedente de la Osten-Sacken Collection (Kagané, 2006: 9 y 14, fig.6).
[1q] Subastada en Drouot-Richelieu (París), 29/03/2019, 62x52,5 cm. (Leclere-Martin-Orts, 2019:7, lote 3).
A la escena formada por la Virgen, el Niño, san Juanito y un ángel, se le añade a San José, con una fisonomía de hombre de avanzada edad.
Virgen de la Leche con el Niño Jesús, San José, San Juan bautista niño y un ángel
[1r] Colección Gallus-Berges (Barcelona).
[1s] Colección Fondevila (Barcelona), 60,6x51,3 cm. Inédita.
[1t] Colección González Martí. Albí la adscribe a un “trabajo de taller” de los Macip y la data hacia 1520 (1979, I:115-117, lám.8).
Como la anterior, alterándose únicamente la fisonomía de San José, que ahora es un hombre de mediana edad, con barba y cabellera morenas, más acorde con la juventud de la Virgen.
Virgen de la Leche con el Niño Jesús, San José, San Juan bautista niño y un ángel
[1u] Colección Villanueva, Madrid. Para Albi (1979, I:425-427, lám.LXXVI) se trataría de una obra “primeriza” de Joanes (h.1535), basada en una composición de Vicente Macip. Para Benito (2000:211) es una copia de taller.
[1v] Subastada por Abalarte, el 3/03/2021 (lote 84), procedente de la colección del pintor Salvador Martínez-Cubells, 64x53 cm. Atribuida por Gómez Frechina a Vicente Joan Macip Comes, aunque nos inclinamos por algún miembro anónimo de su taller.
[1w] Museo Bellas Artes (Castellón) (Codina, 1946:44, núm.151). Según Albi, es “réplica de taller de muy poca calidad” (1979, I:427, lám.LXXVII; Saralegui, 1948:214)
A final variant is a scene where, in addition to the Virgin, the Child, Saint Joseph, and the angel, it features the particularity of not being accompanied by the young Saints John, but by three saints, so the ensemble presents slightly larger dimensions than those we have been presenting.
Nursing Virgin with the Child Jesus, Saint Joseph, an Angel, and Saints
[1x] Private collection, 83x62 cm. In the Batlle y Batlle de Vilafanés collection (Castellón) in 1919 (Arxiu Mas, Clixé: C-27281). Later in the Forcada Collection, Vilafamés. Auctioned at Ansorena (lot 460) on 29/9/2016. Currently in a private collection (Valencia). For Albi (1979, I:98-100, pl.2), it is: "painting from the school of Macip the elder, undoubtedly made in his workshop", an immediate precedent of the panel in the González Martí collection.
[1y] Nicolás Borras, Holy Family. Trenor Collection (Valencia) (Saralegui, 1948: 212). We include this work as it evidences Borras' debt to the Joanesque repertoires. The Saint Joseph, on this occasion, follows the model that appears in the Holy Family of the Valencia City Council, but on the opposite end, with a Saint Joseph in a prayerful attitude.
The various examples produced in the Macip workshop contain a repository of solutions that allowed the painter to demonstrate their capabilities in the mastery of varied procedures. These were the practical-formal foundations that any craftsman with a brush needed to know.
The first element was the composition which, although pre-set, could vary by adding or removing figures at the master's whim or as a response to a specific commission. The distribution of characters was not a trivial matter: special attention was paid to the organization of weights and masses and to spatial configuration, hierarchizing the figures and seeking a certain compositional harmony [2]. Each figure was treated in an individualized manner, based on its iconographic characteristics and its role in the scene.
The execution of flesh tones was the next plastic element whose mastery needed to be demonstrated. The execution of the model compelled its creator to pay special attention to the subtle chromatic differences between the characters, as seen in visible and infrared false color images (IRFC), which reveal very slight variations in the complexion of each figure, between the angel, Saint John, the Virgin, or the Child [4].
Such appreciation becomes more notable when characters like Saint Joseph or other male saints appear, following a precept that was already common, one that envisaged using slightly darker tones in these cases (Cennini, 1998;184). The flesh tones included volumetric modeling, executed with earth pigments (of a greenish-brown color in the IRFC), as well as delicately blushed areas (knees, hands, cheeks) achieved through very subtle glazes of lacquer, carefully diffused. The model also allowed for the exercise of various types of hair –even sometimes beards–, wavy and with sinuous twists (in the case of Mary or the angel), and with concentric curls (in the case of the infant saints). It's interesting to observe how the hairstyles had to be quite defined in the workshop cartoon, as in the various versions, curls and undulations seem to be mechanically repeated in some figures [5].
Cloths and draperies of various typologies required the craftsman to study fabrics, leading them to imitate the variety of textures of each fabric. In the scene coexist from the ruffles of Mary's white linen blouse to the changing or iridescent hues of her sleeves, from the satin sheens of silk mantles to the rugged fur covering Saint John's torso.
Landscapes and skies are also basic elements that needed to be resolved in pictorial practice. Except for the Burjassot model, the rest include skies with a gradient from medium blue to light blue.
Lastly, it's common for stone surfaces to be represented, serving as a pretext for the craftsmen to demonstrate mastery in achieving speckled and marbled effects, a necessary resource in the polychrome finishes typical of altarpiece work.
If the panels coming out of the workshop share similar plastic and formal traits, their technical characteristics –understood in terms of materiality and procedural execution– are also analogous. All present similar formats and are constructed in the same way: a panel of two or three pine planks, tangentially cut, joined at the end and held together by two rear crossbars nailed from the front and back [6]. The preparation was made with gypsum, also documented on the back, along with reinforcement of tow and glue. It's noteworthy that 'endrapat', which was usually common in works of greater prestige, is not recorded.
The panels executed in the workshop were done in front of a cartoon or modellino in color –thus they reproduce identical details in the achievement of the volumes of the fabrics and in the modeling of folds, creases, and wrinkles–. Also for this reason, all present the same tonal and luminous evaluation, and an identical pigment selection for most specimens.
The underlying drawing has been decisive in grouping the paintings coming out of the workshop and separating them from later copies. All the specimens that came out of the workshop show a similar use of tracing, as evidenced by the overlays of the specimens identified as works emanating from the Macip workshop [7], perfectly matching. Scales have been respected, and although there are minimal modifications occasionally, these affect cloths and draperies or auxiliary elements, keeping the main elements of the composition unchanged.
Probably, as part of the training process, pupils had to learn to use the pounce, with which they dabbed charcoal using a pad, transferring the pattern. Later, to fix the drawing, they used an ink, as recommended, for example, by Cennini (1998;41-42). In some examples, the infrared image, in addition to showing the ink outlines, even reveals the sequences of charcoal points under the strokes [8].
Once the drawing was fixed with ink, the gilding phase began. Following a retardataire tradition, the various figures appearing in the scene wore disciform halos, and in them, all the necessary steps were applied to acquire competence in the trade's tasks [7]. The craftsman began by tracing various circles on the gypsum preparation with a compass, whose centers were marked on the cartoon used for tracing. Next, a bed of Armenian bole - a reddish clay that facilitated the subsequent setting of gold - was applied, and when dry, a layer of a light glue or alternatively a mordant (Herrero-Cortell, 2019:557) was spread. Related to the workshop of Joan de Joanes, we know a recipe, noted behind the preparatory drawing of Saint Stephen Led to Martyrdom (Courtauld Institute), autographed by the master. When the mordant was ready, the gold leaf was carefully applied, combing its surface gently to avoid wrinkles and dabbing with cotton. Subsequently, it was burnished with an agate stone or a tusk to achieve luster. Burnishing, through friction, weakens the gold layer, so today many specimens present very poor conservation of the gold stratum. In some panels [1a; 4], strokes with a lacquer-based coral are found. In these models of Virgins, solid chiseled golds were used, in which a lobed pattern recurs to a dotting that outlines the halos puffing the contours. Additionally, it's common for a series of floral or cruciform ornaments, in a radial or tetralobular arrangement, executed with a punch or die of concentric rings [9]. Although in most works these disciform halos prevail, later these types of solid halos were replaced by simple or double rings, executed with gold glitter ('shell gold'), more in line with the fashion of the second half of the century. There are specimens where both typologies seem to coexist, as happens in some figures of Saint Joseph [2]. It's curious that in all cases, Mary's golden girdle appears painted, simulating braided gold, and not gilded with real gold leaf, as would be expected in a panel with such a prominent golden presence. Even in works like the one from Burjassot, which combines the main resources of gilding, Mary's braided belt constitutes a pictorial fiction [1a]. The imitation of gold through gradients of ochres and earths would also be another element of the basic repertoire of effects that painters reaching the level of mastery had to dominate.
After the gilding process, the polychromy began, with a varied palette, so the painter had to know the grinding and preparation of the main pigments. Moreover, a plastic praxis that oscillated between covering applications, fluid applications, and translucent glazes was envisaged, i.e., the three rheological states of paint [10].
The abundant presence of glazes –probably applied using colored dilutions in a medium with plenty of varnish, as contemporary sources recommend (Armenini, 2000:173; Bruquetas, 1998:39)– is responsible for many of those images appearing wiped and flat today because, often, the glazes have disappeared in cleaning processes, which until recent times tended to be quite aggressive [5]. Exemplifying such glazes are the yellow lacquers on the sleeves of Mary or the Angel [10c] and the carmines with which the volume of the Virgin's dress is modeled in all the specimens, sometimes with brushstrokes, or often with extensive 'baths', frequently applied with a pad –as the pattern of knots in the fabric stamped on the surfaces given with lacquer, visible under microscopy, attests– [10d].
The model in question encompasses the characteristics and peculiarities of a mastery test, with a pedagogical purpose. It serves as a demonstrative exercise of solutions, perhaps of an examinatory nature and under analogous conditions, to assess the apprentice against the most pressing notions for pictorial praxis. It would be a test similar to those stipulated in the contemporary ordinances of painters' guilds in various Spanish cities such as, for example, Córdoba (Ramírez, 1915:29-46), Seville (Santos; San Andrés, 2001:266-285), Albacete (Carrillero, 1997:47), or Zaragoza (Falcón, 1997:680-684).
In 1520, an attempt was made in Valencia to create a painters' college to regulate a situation that must have been complex on the eve of the Germanías, and a not very encouraging panorama in many respects. The first decades of the 16th century must have been somewhat turbulent and controversial. The presence of foreign painters in the city – Paolo de San Leocadio or Los Hernandos – would have raised suspicions among the protectionist local craftsmen. To all this would be added the rise of oil painting, a technique that had gained followers with the turn of the century, demanded in contracts, and not all masters mastered (Herrero-Cortell, 2019:801-803). Also contributing were the excesses caused by the growing presence of works by dilettantes and amateurs that could be purchased in the streets, disregarding the ordinances, and that must have continued until the 17th century, as Tramoyeres records:
"in Valencia, there are many people (...) who dedicate themselves to painting (...), but they do it secretly, without having a shop or workshop, thus supporting their needs. Thanks to these people, the farmers and poor people can acquire paintings, (...) at very low prices, which would not be possible if the art were monopolized for the benefit of the guild painters" (1911:446-447).
It is not surprising, upon reading point XV of the ordinances, that the creation of the college was not endorsed by some of the main local craftsmen (Cabanes or Macip), since no painter could lend their name to works done by any operator (Benito-Valles, 1982:64-66), something that was a common practice in most workshops as was the case with Macip (Herrero-Cortell, 2018b; Puig-Herrero-Cortell, 2021).
The attempt to create the painters' college aimed to provide a decisive answer to issues that, until then, were settled behind closed doors, in each workshop. The stipulation of a master's examination, for example, is not indicative that such tests did not exist previously in the workshops; it is simply proposed as an objective measure that tries to equalize conditions and criteria regarding the achievement of such a degree, avoiding unfair situations and arbitrary inequalities.
But what did such tests usually consist of? Clause VII reveals in quite detail the content, indicating that anyone who wanted to be examined as a painter of altarpieces:
"shall be required to plaster a retablo or post, to outline and temper the colors in oil and paint the story that will be designated to him (...) and shall be required to gild, stipple and burnish the gilding, in such a way that it is masterfully finished to the knowledge of the said examiners" (Benito-Valles, 1982:65-66).
Teaching always began with the elementary notions: arranging materials, preparing glues, grinding pigments, making brushes, cooking oils, setting up the panel, clamping it, and protecting its back with tow (Ramírez, 1915:37; Bruquetas 2006:3), with the difficulty increasing until becoming 'imaginer' painters.
Those who did not reach the highest degree of mastery remained as gilders or painter-decorators, which were lower categories, but could require specific exams in line with the knowledge of their specialty. Thus, in our opinion, there must have been even 'custom' exams that, in some way, were made specifically to assess the development of a certain competence, such as gilding. Applying this idea to the Macip workshop, this could explain, for example, why some works like the one from Burjassot [1a] give less importance to the pictorial part –even omitting skies, landscapes, or further figures–, and propose solutions for the correct execution of gilding, with lozenges and interlaced motifs –with the typical hallmark of the Macip productions, reminiscent of the patterns of Venetian tablecloths–. In this specimen, the emphasis on gilding exceeds the usual, generally reserved only for halos. Additionally, it includes various resources of the trade: burnishing, incisions, chiseling, and repoussé of different types, along with corlas as observed in the contour and volumes to the chalice or the gold imitated with pigments in the Virgin's belt. Remember, at this point, that characters such as Batiste Buera, a profession of gilder, passed through the workshop during their training phase (Puig et al., 2015:47-48), who could have had a specific mastery exam, like the mentioned panel.
These tests could also be economically amortized, which fits very well with the idiosyncrasy and operational policy of the workshops of the time (Herrero-Cortell, 2018). However, for this, they had to be sold in the workshop, according to the medieval Valencian custom established in the Fueros by Jaime I himself, by which "neither images of God nor Saints were to be taken to sell in the squares, and whoever did so had to pay a fine of twenty sous" (Benito-Valles, 1982:63).
All the versions studied present analogous technical characteristics, which, beyond a very similar chromatic utilization, abound in the typical productive resources of the workshop, highlighting the use of mechanical systems for the recycling of the model (Herrero-Cortell, 2018:8-18).
Frequently, the attributions of these works vary significantly, but from now on it is advisable to distinguish between those emanating from the workshop and the copies by later epigones and followers, since, as explained, the model enjoyed a singular fortune. Even for the former, any attribution will always prove fruitless, as these are specimens that seldom allow for a rigorous filiation, since unknown artisans operated in the shadow within the family workshop, repeating the compositions and stylistic elements of the master. In fact, given their dual educational and revenue-generating character, these works were subject to the methodological prescriptions of the workshop and the supervision of the master, leaving little room for free interpretation. Perhaps, to such disciples may be attributed many of the devotional works in which concessions to a somewhat less elaborate execution are manifestly perceived, without evidencing a significant qualitative loss. Let's not forget that such pieces left with the quality seal guaranteed by a workshop like that, in a unique balance between knowledge transfer, painting pedagogy, and strategies for the perpetuation of the offer.
Ilustrations:
1. For the identification of each of these versions, see section 2.2. It's possible that versions n, u, v, w, and y did not directly come from the Macip workshop.
2. Nursing Virgin with the Child Jesus, Saint Joseph, an Angel, and Saints (version 1x). There coexist burnished and chiseled disciform halos, shell gold in the case of Saint Joseph, and simulated gold on Mary's belt.
3. Anonymous (following models from the Macip workshop). Holy Family with Saint Johnito and Angel, Saint Vincent Ferrer, and Saint Francis of Assisi. Triptych, Culla. Photo courtesy of Ferran Olucha.
4. Macip Workshop, Nursing Virgin with the Child Jesus, Saint Joseph, Saint John the Baptist as a child, and an angel (see version 1s). False-color infrared image.
5. Comparison of the Virgin's face in three specimens coming out of the workshop. Only in the first specimen have all the glazes been preserved.
6. Macip Workshop, Nursing Virgin (Private Collection), radiography and reverse. The planks are held together by two rear crossbars nailed from both front and back. The back is protected by a layer of tow and calcium sulfate.
7. Macip Workshop, Nursing Virgin. Digital hybrid image with an overlay of eight models coming from the same cartoon. Some show a turn of angle, typical of working with tracings and mechanical means.
8. Macip Workshop, Nursing Virgin (See version 1c), infrared photography (detail). Note the stenciling points visible on the contours of the fingers.
9. Various models of disciform halos, burnished and repoussé, and with corlas.
10. Macip Workshop, Nursing Virgin (Private Collection). Surface microscopy details of various points. The repertoire of resources oscillates between fluid applications, impastos, and glazes.
1) Maison, 1960; Martínez-Burgos, 1990:165-188; Bambach, 1990: 127-136; Pereda, 2007:27-144; Gianeselli, 2012:83.
2) Saralegui, 1948: 214; Albi, 1979; Benito, 1997: 210-211; Company-Puig, 2011, or Ferrer, 2014, among others.
3) Attributed, we believe, erroneously to Miquel Joan Porta. https://arterestauracion.com/pinturas-restauradas/pintura-manierista/la-sagrada-familia-con-san-juanito-y-un-angel-miquel-joan-porta/ [consulta: 18/12/2021]
4) Abalarte subastas [accessed: 19/12/2021].
5) [Breath or mordant size for gilding / take as much aloes as a walnut / as much gum arabic as an almond / as much honey as a split hazelnut / and crush everything with as much vinegar as needed / to run through brush or pen]: GONZÁLEZ 1999:54. On the sizes HERRERO-CORTELL, 2019:557-558.
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