Unknown

Large Botanical Art Wall Panel

1950

5021 Surreal Abstract woman riding a horse Signed Blake Image size 11x15.5"

3794 Equestrian oil painting set in a custom wood frame Image size 23.5x19.25"

5-3623 Acrylic on artist board set in a vintage frame Image size 7x10"

5-3756 Oil painting on canvas of Italian boys having a feast unframed

2708 Original vintage oil on canvas signed lower right by Vourkas 1973.Unframed

%-3074 Italian Fisherman Portrait, oil on canvas applied to a board, displayed in a wood frame, signed lower left by E.Mori

This painting is typical of the art of Jan Weenix, one of the best still life and hunting painters of the Dutch Golden Age. In a cleverly disordered manner, he depicts ten studies of dogs (mainly spaniels and greyhounds) and the sumptuous study of a stole. These studies were probably intended to be used as a source of inspiration and adapted in the painter's compositions, as we will see in a close examination of some of his paintings. 1. Jan Weenix, a prolific still life painter Jan Weenix was born into a family of artists: his father Jan Baptist Weenix (1621 - 1659) was also a landscape and still life painter and his mother Josyntgen d'Hondecoeter was the daughter of the animal painter Gillis d'Hondecoeter (1575 - 1638). His father trained him together with his cousin Melchior d'Hondecoeter (1636 - 1695). In 1664 Jan Weenix became a member of the St. Luke's Guild in Utrecht, to which he belonged until 1668. In 1679 he married Pieternella Backer with whom he had 13 children. His compositions, often related to hunting (still lifes, portraits of hunters) were very successful, ensuring him a certain financial ease. Jan Weenix also painted large-scale decorations: while staying in Düsseldorf with the Prince-Elector of the Palatinate between 1702 and 1712, he executed twelve gigantic compositions combining landscapes, hunting scenes and still life for the Bensberg hunting lodge. 2. Description of the artwork The painting displays a great apparent disorder that hides a rigorous organisation in four quarters. It presents ten studies of hunting dogs and one study of a stole. The studies of the stole and of two of the dogs (the greyhound in the lower right and the spaniel in the upper right quarter) are quite elaborate, whereas those of the other dogs are sketchier. As an example, the dog in the upper right corner is only partially painted. The dogs' coats, of different colours - brown, sandy, grey or black - stand out against the warm brown background and are illuminated by the shine of their white hair. This white colour, probably executed with ceruse white, illuminates the study of a stole which stands out in the lower left-hand corner while the red colour of its lining warms up the composition. The purpose of this stole is enigmatic: we think it is probably a neckband, but it could also be the back of the turban of an oriental character. To the right of this stole is the outline of a long animal leg, perhaps a horse leg. Similar studies are rare in the work of Jan Weenix, but the Rijksmuseum recently acquired the study of a seated monkey. This study, executed in the same brown chromatic range, is much more accomplished. It has been reused with minimal change in many compositions. It is likely that Jan Weenix had less frequently a monkey at his disposal, and that he therefore depicted it in great details, whereas he could probably easily find dogs as models. Note the characteristic white dot in the corner of each pupil that brings them to life! 3. Related artworks We have tried to relate the various dogs in this study to the countless dogs that appear in the paintings of Jan Weenix, as listed in the catalogue 'Father and Son - Weenix' compiled by Anke van Wagenberg- Ter Hoeven in 2018. A first example is the painting entitled "The Prodigal Son on the Steps of a Palace" (catalogue number 7 - 8th photo in the gallery). In the lower left-hand corner of the composition, a spaniel is barking at a peacock perched on a stone. This spaniel, which is depicted in a similar manner in the "Portrait of a Young Man with a Falcon" in the Bremen Kunsthalle (catalogue number 76), is reminiscent of the spaniel in the upper left-hand quarter of our study (although the latter is slenderer and the direction of its head differs). We also find, in a slightly different pose, the seated greyhound that is at the top of our painting in the composition representing "A Swan, a Stag, a Hare and Birds presented by two hunting Valets" (catalogue number 130 - last photo in the gallery). The sketch of this greyhound in our study is unfinished: the painter only painted the grey undercoat and the white parts of the coat, without completing the sandy coat which appears in the final painting. We can see from these various examples that our study was probably more a repertoire of forms than a model for a specific composition. The painter probably used it for inspiration before adapting each dog study...

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Artist Commentary: I have been asked numerous times by my loyal customers to create more holiday winter cards of my paintings. As I was looking outside my window in this month of March, the snowy scenes in front of me were an ideal inspiration for me. And to make things even better for my creative juices, Paris had just been covered a few weeks before by a couple inches of snow. This happens very rarely and the whole city was paralysed. Parisians were unhappy, as always, but Paris under the snow is magnificent. I asked my good parisian friend to share with me the pictures she took of Paris under the snow. Between the winter view from my window and my friend’s pictures, I had enough material to immerse myself into this project. In 3 weeks, I created 8 paintings and I had the best time of my life!!! I wish I could do that all the time. I painted holiday lights, ornaments, some snow, and I even had an american cardinal in snowy Paris!!! I felt right at home between my 2 countries: France and the US! What wintery scenes or holiday scenes do you find magnificent? Words that describe this piece: snow, tree, blue jay...

"Knock on Wood". oil on canvas board. Painting size is 11.25 x7 inches. Signed lower right. Certificate of authenticity is available.