Getty Museum Acquires Rare Bassano Painting

LOS ANGELES, CA —The Getty Museum announced Monday that it has acquired the 16th-century painting "Miracle of the Quails," which was painted in 1554 by Venetian artist Jacopo Bassano. The painting is expected to get one of its first ever public showing in November.

Measuring around seven feet tall, the painting is one of the largest works created by the artists, according to ARTnews. It depicts a biblical episode in which Moses and the Israelites are able to avoid starvation in the desert when a flock of quails falls from the sky.

In the painting, high priests Aaron and Moses are portrayed on the left in close conversation. The rest of the canvas is occupied by animal and naturalistic depictions of the people of Israel who gather the birds that have miraculously fallen from the sky, the museum said.

The museum said the painting is notable for Bassano's use of color and his technique. He uses colors like: floral rose, pallid green, chocolate brown and lustrous white, which are applied with a fluid pattern of improvised brushstrokes.

"We're delighted to welcome Venetian artist Jacopo Bassano's 16th-century painting 'The Miracle of the Quails' into the Getty collections," the museum said in a statement online. "A grand scale painting rarely seen by the wider public, it depicts an episode of the Miracle of the Quail in the Old Testament. 'The Miracle of the Quails' is an example of Bassano's artistic style and his juxtaposing of historical subjects with everyday people."

According to ARTnews, Getty director Timothy Potts said the work will be installed in early November, and it will be the centerpiece of the museum's 16th-century Italian paintings gallery, which also will include works by Titian, Veronese, Savoldo, Lotto and Dosso Dossi.