Artwork
Allegorie auf die Kirche (zugeschrieben)
Allegorie auf die Kirche (zugeschrieben) is an unspecified painting by the Mannerist artist Paolo Fiammingo. It dates from 1568 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1568, the painting attributed to Paolo Fiammingo presents a densely populated allegorical tableau. The work, now part of the Alte Pinakothek’s holdings, gathers figures in period costume engaged in various gestures, set against a stage of contrasting illumination that heightens the sense of movement and drama.
Subject & Meaning
The composition functions as an allegory of the Church, populated by clerics, laypersons and symbolic characters. Some individuals point or hold objects, while others kneel, suggesting acts of devotion, instruction, or labor. The presence of a kneeling man with a hammer hints at the notion of building or repairing the ecclesiastical body.
Technique & Style
Executed in the late‑Mannerist idiom, the painting employs exaggerated poses and a crowded spatial arrangement typical of the period. Fiammingo’s handling of light and dark creates a chiaroscuro effect, with illuminated figures emerging from deeper shadows, lending the scene a theatrical intensity reminiscent of his Venetian contemporaries.
History & Provenance
Paolo Fiammingo, a Flemish artist who trained in Antwerp before establishing his career in Venice, produced works that blended northern detail with Italian color. This particular canvas, attributed to him, entered the collection of Munich’s Alte Pinakothek, where it remains on display as an example of cross‑regional Mannerist practice.
Artist & collection
Artist
Pauwels Franck, known in Italy as Paolo Fiammingo and Paolo Franceschi (c. 1540–1596), was a Flemish painter, who, after training in Antwerp, was active in Venice for most of his life. He is mainly known for his…
Der zwölfjährige Jesus im Tempel (Kopie nach)
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Der Disput von Kirchenlehrern über das Mysterium der unbefleckten Empfängnis
The baptism of Saint Augustine
The Wedding in Cana
Christ before Caiaphas
Saints Augustine, Jerome and Gregory the Great
Sermon by St Ignatius of Loyola
The Presentation in the Temple
Johann Nepomuk vor König Wenzel
Darstellung im Tempel