Colnaghi Foundation Journal 03 - Magazine - Page 193
190
Onofre Falcó, a Spanish Renaissance master
Onofre Falcó, a Spanish Renaissance master
Figs. D & E / Onofre Falcó,
Mary Magdalene and Saint
Sebastian, Photo Moreno,
Instituto del Patrimonio
Cultural de España, MCD.
Fig. 13 / Onofre Falcó
(attributed here), Saint
Sebastian, 65.5 x 26 cm,
Private Collection.
Fig. 14 / Onofre Falcó
(attributed here), Saint
Roch, 65.5 x 26 cm, Private
Collection.
Among the patrons for whom Falcó worked was the
nobleman Joan Aguiló y Romeu de Codinats, with
whom he evidently forged a friendship, as the former
acted as executor of his will.31 In 1556, on the death of
Juan Cardona, Falcó took over the position of painter
to the Generalitat (city government) and worked for the
city of Valencia on various occasions.32 On the artist’s
own death in 1560 the position was assumed by his son,
also called Nicolás Falcó. Onofre Falcó’s collaboration
with Joan de Joanes was not limited to the principal
altarpiece in the parish church of San Esteban. We
know that in 1552 he prepared various panels with
gesso to be painted by Joanes for the predella of the
altarpiece in the parish church of San Bartolomé.33
It is now possible to identify several other unpublished
works by Falcó which offer a more complete
understanding of his pictorial corpus; these additions
to his oeuvre will further facilitate the identification of
other works in the future. Two paintings referred to as
Saint Sebastian and A Female Saint 34 in the Moreno Archive
(inv. 16738-B) and described as anonymous are clearly
by the artist (figs. D & E). The depiction of the nude
Saint Sebastian, who is tied to a tree with arrows piercing
his body, is of notable beauty. Mary Magdalene holds a
pot of ointment and the Crown of Thorns which she
protects with a cloth. The elongated proportions of the
figures, the typical manner of depicting and defining
bare feet, the folds of the clothing, and the saints’ facial
features all reflect Falcó’s style. The direction of their
gazes and the narrow format of both panels suggest
they may have been part of a triptych. Two other
wings of a triptych in a private collection depict Saint
Sebastian (fig. 13) and Saint Roch (fig. 14) and can also be
attributed to Falcó through their stylistic characteristics.
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