Ten Dog Studies and a Study of a Stole, a panel attributed to Jan Weenix

Late 17th century

This small landscape shows a hunting scene: two riders are chasing a stag with their dogs at the edge of a forest. Signed by Peter von Bemmel, it is typical of the production of this...

Jan van Haensbergen was a painter of the Dutch Golden Age and a pupil of Cornelius van Poelenburgh (Utrecht 1594 - 1667). The painting we are presenting is inspired by Poelenburgh’s landscapes from his Italian sojourn. The dreamlike atmosphere of this Gathering in antique ruins appealed to us. Against a backdrop of antique ruins, three draped characters (perhaps bathers) are sitting in a circle, greeting a fourth character walking towards them. Their tranquility contrasts with the bustle of the other characters in the background. They constitute a vivid illustration of otium, this leisure time that allows us to realize our full potential. With this Arcadian landscape, Jan van Haensbergen invites us in turn to leave the hustle and bustle of everyday life behind, to take a break, to enjoy the present moment chatting with close friends… 1. Jan van Haensbergen, a landscape and portrait painter of the Dutch Golden Age Jan van Haensbergen was born in 1642 in Gorinchem, a town in southern Holland to the east of Rotterdam. He was a pupil of Cornelius van Poelenburgh, and began by painting landscapes inspired by those of his master, in an Italianate style. Between 1668 and 1669, he was registered at the Guild of Saint Luke in Utrecht. In 1669, he moved to The Hague, where he joined the Confrérie Pictura, an artist society founded in 1656. His portraits, which became his main activity as a painter after settling in The Hague, were strongly influenced by Caspar Netscher (Prague or Heidelberg 1639 - The Hague 1684), whom he met in The Hague and whose son Constantijn became his son-in-law by marrying his daughter Magdalena. In addition to his work as an artist, Van Haensbergen was also an art dealer, probably helped by his appointment as Dean of the Confrérie Pictura, where he also teached. 2. Description of the artwork and related paintings This painting seems to us to be a kind of allegory of otium, that quiet bliss promised by Epicurus. It might even evoke an Epicurean proverb: "It is better to lie on the naked ground and be at ease, than to have a golden carriage and a rich table and be worried" . Three draped young people - two men and a woman in the background - are seated in a circle, greeting a fourth figure walking towards them, hair disheveled and body draped in a towel as if drying off after a bath, indicating the need for prior purification to fully enjoy this rest. Their nonchalance contrasts with the bustle of the various characters in the background. The composition is punctuated by successive diagonals, and opens onto a landscape on the right, with a succession of mountainous planes. This painting is typical of the Italianate works produced by Van Haensbergen in the 1660s under the influence of Cornelis van Poelenburgh...

We would like to thank Carolina Trupiano Kowalczyk for suggesting this attribution to Karel du Jardin after direct examination of the artwork. Her study of the drawing (in Italian), ...

This painting seduced us with its rich colors. Depicting Diana and her companions surprised by Actaeon, it was inspired by an engraving by Aegidius Sadeler II after a painting by Jos...

Still Life of Game with Dogs and Spaniels in a Landscape Setting Carstian Luyckx (Flemish, 1623 – c.1675) Oil on canvas Circa 1670 Unsigned 43 ½ x 59 1/8 in.; Frame 52 7/8 x 68 7/8...

An oil painting of two rustic dogs fighting over a piece of food. It is painted on an oak panel. Signed top left. The signature is a bit faded, it's a monogram J.S. by Joseph Stevens. He often signed with a monogram. In a gilded frame frame with gesso moldings. Dimensions frame: 41 x 47 cm Dimensions painting: 17 x 23 cm. Joseph Stevens is the older brother of the very well-known artist Alfred Stevens. In the book 'The Belgian Art Book' by J. de Geest, it is written that Joseph Stevens has given a new dimension to painting animals. Joseph Stevens is an early representative of realism and social art. While Eugene Verboeckhoven has royal dogs pose on a beautifully embroidered cushion, Joseph Stevens already has an eye for the dark side of animal existence: exploitation by man, who in turn is a victim of society. His first successful painting, Brussels in the morning, shows how miserable dogs and poor people suffer the same fate. In the Sandman, Stevens shows a joint effort of man and dog, in which the viewer cannot ignore the social conditions: exhausting labor at dawn in some suburb. The gray sky and monochromy of the suburb add to the sinister atmosphere. Joseph Stevens was one of the first artists to take the urban proletariat as his subject. Stevens enjoys a very high reputation in his Parisian years. His brother Alfred writes: 'I am of this time, but you, Joseph, you are of the race, and thus you are of all times.' French critics agree. Stevens' works are a source of inspiration for the literature of the time. For example, Beaudelaire writes a poem about Stevens' dogs. Joseph Edouard STEVENS. Belgium, 1819-1892 Stevens was a painter, etcher and engraver. Brother of the gifted painter Afred Stevens. Education at the Academy in Brussels (1834-1835). Debuted at the Salon in Brussels in 1842. Continued his career in Paris in 1852. He was primarily the painter of canvases depicting domestic animals (dogs, monkeys, horses), sometimes in curious, even idiosyncratic situations, and far from romanticism. This realism, of which he was one of the pioneers, earned him the interest of critics and intellectuals. His approach was defined by this contemporary realism that eschewed idealized depictions of animals as heroic emblems of nobility. Rather, Stevens emphasized the ordinary animals of everyday life, with a particular focus on working dogs, stray dogs and all of the mutts that wandered the streets of Brussels. Museums and public collections, including' Royal Museum of Fine Arts Brussels, Ghent, Hamburg, Paris, Musée du Louvre, Rouen, Musee des Beaux-Arts. Stuttgart, State Gallery. King Leopold...

Striking, beautifully composed, c. 1740, Italian, oil-on-canvas painting of three hounds in a mountainous landscape. Soulful, slightly naive and richly detailed. Held in an antique, ...

Jan Weenix Canvas Size: 32 x 26" (82 x 66cm) Outside Frame Size: 40 x 34" (102 x 86cm) This beautiful painting is unsigned but this is not unusual with Jan ...