The Musical Contest between Apollo and Marsyas, Peter Sion (1624-169

The Musical Contest between Apollo and Marsyas,
by Peter Sion (Antwerp, 1624-1695)
Signed in the lower right corner P. Sion
17th century Antwerp School
Oil on copper, dim. h. 53 cm, w. 45 cm
Moulded and ebonized wood frame with wide mouldings, with reversed profile
Framed dimensions: h. 80 cm, w. 72 cm

Our work illustrates the musical contest between Apollo, god of music, and the satyr Marsyas. This mythological episode is recounted by the Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphoses.
Taking place in a wooded landscape marked by shades of green and turquoise, the competition begins with Marsyas, seated on a rock and playing the flute. King Midas, seated in the middle, recognizable by his golden royal cape lined with ermine, is chosen to judge and designate the winner. He gestures towards the satyr. On the right, Apollo, standing, his lyre under his arm, partially dressed in a pink cloth, laurel crown on his head, points his index finger at his rival.
The scene chosen by Peter Sion illustrates the beginning of the competition, where Marsyas, confident, thinks he can win. In the rest of the story that Ovid tells us, Apollo challenges him to play by turning the instrument over, setting an example with his upside-down lyre. Unable to play the inverted flute, Marsyas loses and suffers the punishment of the god of music, he is flayed alive.
Our composition focusing on the first part of the story is endowed with a palette rich in intense colors, favored by the support (copper) which allows to obtain saturated colors and a better state of conservation than wood.

Peter Sion (Antwerp, 1624-1695)
Peter Sion was an Antwerp painter of landscapes, history paintings and genre scenes. His work was mainly intended for export and he mainly specialized in biblical subjects.
Born in Antwerp in 1624, registered in the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke in 1636-37 as a pupil of Frans van Lanckvelt, he became a master in 1649, he worked in the workshop of Guillaume Forchondt, one of the most important exporters of Flemish works of art to all of Europe.
In 1682, he was appointed dean of the Guild of Saint Luke.
Peter Sion used copper as a support for the majority of his works. Biblical scenes being his favorite subject, his style is very close to the late Mannerism of Frans Francken and his workshop, with which his works are often confused. One of the characteristics of his work is the quality of the drawing as well as the significant space occupied by the figures in his compositions.