(Donauwörth 1622–1700 Brixen) Elegant company on a palatial loggia, oil on canvas, 70 x 95 cm, framed,

We are grateful to Dr. Johann Kronbichler, Diözesanmuseum Brixen, and Drs. Jan Kosten of the RKD, The Hague, for their friendly assistance with the cataloguing of this picture. This painting is one of the best preserved works of the Tyrolean painter of the Baroque, Stephan Kessler. Kessler was probably the most important Tyrolean painter of this era. The architecture of the palace loggia occurs frequently in Kessler's work (see the 'Departure of the Prodigal Son', Palais Trapp, Innsbruck, with its identical columns and coffered pedestals). It was influenced by contemporary painters, such as Dirk van Delen and den Steenwijck, as well as by the architectural fantasies of Vredeman de Vries. Typical of his work is the tongued coffered ceiling which Kessler frequently featured. The backdrop of the city which is reminiscent of contemporary depictions of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem is often to be found in his work. We are grateful to Drs. Kosten for the information that engravings by Abraham Bosse were used as models for the elegant, courtly figures. Kessler often used such precedents, as he did in a series depicting the Prodigal Son for the Palais Trapp in Innsbruck (see cat. “Stephan Kessler, Ein Tiroler painter der Rubenszeit”, Brixen 2005, pp. 152–156, cat. nos. 25–28). The rather small format for Kessler and the fine handling indicate an important patron from the Tyrol aristocracy. From 1643 onwards Stephan Kessler resided in Brixen. In 1644 he was given citizenship there and it was suggested to him that rather than pay the normal taxes, he should paint a picture for the Rathaus. Shortly after his arrival in Brixen, Kessler founded a workshop which he ran with great entrepreneurial skill. After only a short time, he won commissions from the circles of the church and the nobility. In later years three of his sons joined him in his workshop. He died on 31 August 1700 as “der freyen Khunst Mahler”. The fascinating thing about the profane work by Stephan Kessler, according to a review of the exhibition in Brixen of 2005, was the luxurious decoration, the magnificent costumes and the entrancing way in which he captured a fleeting moment.., the rapt musicians, the exhuberant, swirling, erotic dance scenes and the voluptuous 'easy girls’...”.