Loading

Still-Life with Hunting Equipment and Dead Birds

Willem van Aelst1668

Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe

Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe, Germany

Willem van Aelst’s hunting still life is notable for its faithful depiction of nature and the strikingly illusionistic treatment of the different bits of equipment – among them falcon hoods, a hunting horn and a velvet pouch – and the quarry itself, a partridge strung up by one leg and hanging head down, its soft grey plumage rendered with great naturalism.

The fly, which has momentarily settled on it, is a symbol of transience. Like the shimmer of the fly’s wings, the texture of the soft velvet, the roughness of the leather and the smooth surface of the metal are rendered with such virtuoso skill that the viewer gets a sense of almost being able to touch them. The painting gave the Netherlandish artist ample scope to display his skill as a ‘fine’ painter (fijnschilder).

This sophisticated style of painting was highly prized by Ferdinand II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, at whose Florentine court he worked from 1649 to 1656, and by Caroline Louise, Margravine of Baden, who acquired the painting nearly a century after its completion. Her art collection laid the foundation for the Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe.

Show lessRead more
  • Title: Still-Life with Hunting Equipment and Dead Birds
  • Creator: Willem van Aelst
  • Creator Lifespan: 1626 - 1683
  • Creator Nationality: Netherlandish
  • Date Created: 1668
  • Physical Dimensions: 68 x 54 cm
  • Subject Keywords: Hunting, Still Life, Birds, Venison, Songbird, Partrige, Hun, Huntingbag, Folconry, Par force hunting, Hounding, Battue
  • Type: Painting
  • Publisher: Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe (State Art Gallery Karlsruhe)
  • External Link: Still-Life with Hunting Equipment and Dead Birds
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Art Genre: Still Life
  • Art Movement: Baroque, Dutch Golden Age
  • Support: Canvas
  • Depicted Topic: Still-life, Hunting
Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe

Get the app

Explore museums and play with Art Transfer, Pocket Galleries, Art Selfie, and more

Home
Discover
Play
Nearby
Favorites