The other thing that places such artworks in the limelight of collectors interest is that they open that door to the workshop of an artist and unveil some precious part of artistic practice.

These studies, drawings and unfinished paintings show us a glimpse of that magic of an artwork creation process.

I was browsing internet catalogues of forthcoming auction sales and bumbed into an interesting piece at a high-level Old Master Day Sale at Christies (taking part 5 July 2019).

Abraham van Diepenbeeck, The scourging of Saint Paul (oil on panel, 8 ½ x 7 ¾ in.; 21.6 x 19.7 cm.)

This painting may seem strange in the eyes of art lover. Really, we do seldom see such pieces in the museums or books.

Indeed, this artwork was not created to be sold or displayed somewhere back then in the 17th century.

This was a preparatory study for a larger painting that Abraham van Diepenbeeck showed to the comissioner (the Dominican Church of St. Paul in Antwerp in this case) and that had later served as a basis for transmission of the drawing to a larger surface.

These vertical and horisontal lines form some kind of a net that artists would use in order to accurately plan complex compositions of a considerable scale.

The fact that we see such behind-the-scenes details in combination with these fast and vivid strokes that make this intimate piece feel so true and authentic enhances the value of this artwork way more than that could ever be assumed at the times it was created.