Still Life with Dead Birds and Game Bag Willem van Aelst 1674

Still Life with Dead Birds and Game Bag
Willem van Aelst 1674
From the collection of
The J. Paul Getty Museum
Willem van Aelst's sensual and sumptuous treatment of the dead birds, leather case, and satin drapery in this picture forms an obvious link with his other still-life specialty, collections of luxurious objects. In this hunting trophy picture, van Aelst rendered the brightly colored birds and wide range of surfaces and textures with the same lushness he devoted elsewhere to crystal goblets and silver platters. He painted the birds so carefully that they can be accurately identified: the blue-green one is a kingfisher, the small red one is a Eurasian bullfinch, and the yellow-brown bird is a male bearded tit.

Few Dutch artists actually painted dead game and fowl, perhaps because hunting and shooting was not widely practiced in the northern Netherlands. Although a small number of game and fowl still lifes did begin to appear in Holland around 1640, the market for such pictures remained small.
Details
Title: Still Life with Dead Birds and Game Bag
Creator: Willem van Aelst
Date: 1674
Physical Dimensions: 45.1 x 36.8 cm (17 3/4 x 14 1/2 in.)
External Link: Find out more about this object on the Museum website. http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/769/willem-van-aelst-still-life-with-dead-birds-and-game-bag-dutch-1674/
Medium: Oil on canvas
Source Credit Line: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Signature: Signed and dated upper right corner, "Guill.[mo]. van Aelst 1674."
Object Type: Painting
Object Status: Permanent Collection
Number: 85.PA.236
Display Location: Not currently on view
Department: Paintings
Culture: Dutch
Classification: Paintings

The J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, United States

The J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center features works of art dating from the eighth through the twenty-first century, showcased against a backdrop of dramatic architecture, tranquil gardens, and breathtaking views of Los Angeles. The collection includes European paintings, drawings, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, decorative arts, and European, Asian, and American photographs.

The J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa in Malibu features Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities presented in a setting modeled after a first-century Roman country house, the Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum, Italy.

Get information about visiting the Getty Center and the Getty Villa at getty.edu/visit.

Willem van Aelst
May 16, 1627 - 1683

Willem van Aelst was a Dutch Golden Age artist who specialized in still-life painting with flowers or game.
http://hisour.com/art-medium/paintings/still-life-with-dead-birds-and-game-bag-willem-van-aelst-1674/