Research Point: Still Life (Part 1: Dutch 17th Century)

Look at the work of some of the 17th century Dutch still life and flower painters . Make notes on paintings that you especially admire and find out more about the techniques that were employed at the time. Research at least one painting that has iconographic significance. Which of the objects depicted carry particular meaning and what was that meaning?

Introduction

The Dutch term 'stilleven' was coined in the 17th century and this is where the English 'Still Life' is derived from. (1) This was a period of development of trade and wealth in the Dutch Republic and middle class merchants had disposable income which they could spend on paintings to adorn their homes(2). There was ,therefore, a period of profuse production and selling in the art market.

There are two theories about how still life developed as a separate genre in the Netherlands:
One idea is that it is a direct descendant of Roman frescoes and mosaics and frescoes depicting animals and fruits which decorated the walls of Villas. Several of the mosaics from Pompeii have been preserved and I have admired them many times Click here to view a fine example of a sea creatures mosaic courtesy of Wikipedia. Eventually, by the 15th century in Italy tromp l'oeil marquetry panels were on the walls of wealthy people's homes and Charles Sterling proposed that the still life evolved from these.(1)

Perhaps a more convincing theory is that the still life developed from religious paintings. Still life elements were included in Dutch religious paintings from the 15th century onwards. The objects include would often have a symbolic meaning related to the main religious action of the painting.

In the 16th century, Flemish Mannerist painters started to make the still life elements more important with the religious scenes no longer dominating but occupying a small space in the background. (1) an example of this is seen below in Pieter Aertsen's butchers stall with the flight into Egypt. Meat and other foods clutter and dominate the foreground of the painting (the severed cow's head seems to be almost alive and staring out accusingly at us). In the background, the religious scene is subordinate and can only just be made out through the open archway/door of the stall. The inclusion of all the meat may have something to do with the depiction of transience and awareness of mortality. I will talk about this in more detail when I describe 'Vanitas' paintings. 





Pieter Aertsen: The Butcher's Stall with the Flight into Egypt 1551
Oil on Canvas (Source - Wikipedia)

Eventually, the still life elements were liberated completely to become the entire subject of paintings but may objects maintained their symbolic meanings and people of the day would have been able to read the hidden language of the still life pieces.

Looking at still life painting of the Dutch golden age from the perspective of a 21st century viewer, it is tempting to be dismissive because the painting is hyper-real and the subjects are faithfully and accurately represented. This is a function which in this day and age can be carried out by photography. Obviously in the 17th century this was not possible The high level of skill and the sensitivity of the painting of these masters is undeniable. Accuracy and realism were the primary indicators of quality in painting in this era. Nevertheless, due to the hierarchy of genres that existed in art theory, still life painters were still considered: "The common foot soldiers in the army of art" (Samuel van Hoogstraten) (2). Their more elevated counterparts for example in history painting were subject to strict theoretical guidelines and critical scrutiny. Receiving less critical attention, the still life painters were freer to experiment and develop their work. I see a parallel here in the recent development and pushing of boundaries in the field of drawing. Being less exposed to critical derision can allow greater creativity.

Techniques of the Dutch Masters

The production of such realistic works of art becomes all the more impressive when you consider they there were fewer pigments available to painters in the 17th Century. There was no commercial production of paints in tubes. Pigments would be ground by had each day and combined with a painting medium such as linseed oil. (3)

There are very few records of painting techniques from the period in question because painters were trained by being apprenticed to a master rather than learning in college or from books or manuals. Scientific methods including X-rays and infrared techniques have shed some light on the working methods used:(3)

Care had to be taken as many of the pigments used had quite differing characteristics in terms of drying time and application and some would not be compatible with each other. Given the laborious preparation of paints required each day it was common for artists to work on a small section of a painting at a time. The process of creating a painting went in four district stages:(3)

(1) Inventing - planning and drawing the (often complex) composition
(2) Dead Colouring- monochromatic underpainting to establish the main tonal zones
(3) Working up and Finishing - Applying the pigments - working on one small area of the painting at a time as described above
(4) Glazing - This layers of translucent paint would be applied over certain areas of the composition to modulate the colours.(3)



Examples of Dutch Still Life Paintings

Flower Piece

Two very famous proponents of flower painting were Abrosius Bosschaert the Elder and Jan Davidsz de Heem. The example I have chosen here is by the latter. I love the visual impact created by the wide tonal range in this piece with the almost black background and bright colours of the flowers ranging right through to bright white. There are elements spilling over the edge of the table and the stalks of wheat, flowers and berries are skilfully arranged so that all of the elements seem to link together and the eye is drawn around the whole composition. The artist has captured the delicacy of the flower petals as well as the smooth reflective nature of the vase. 
 


Jan Davidz de Heem (c1670) Oil on Canvas
(source:wikipedia.org)

Flowers were extremely popular in 17th century Holland. Collectors of Tulips paid extraordinarily high prices for tulip bulbs of special varieties. It would not have been common to have cut flowers in a vase at home being an expensive and perishable commodity, but flower enthusiasts would pay well to acquire beautiful paintings of flowers to decorate their homes.(1)

The paintings were often composed including flowers which bloomed at different times of year - so were not entirely 'realist' in nature. The painting illustrated above is no exception, containing irises and tulips which are spring flowers alongside yellow ears of wheat which would be expected to be seen around harvest time (late summer/early autumn). The fruits are also not all of the same season. There are blackberries (autumn) alongside apricots (late spring/early summer). This suggests that the painter made studies of the individual elements at different times of year and then designed the composition from pre-existing sketches rather than painting directly from life. 

Many flowers had symbolic value in paintings. For example lilies were a symbol of purity and the Virgin Mary. The overarching theme of the flower paintings (as well as the butterflies and fruit featured) was linked to their perishability or short lifespans. This was a reminder of the transience of life. The butterflies also symbolise the life of the soul after death as they flutter around - no longer weighed down by earthly desires.

Breakfast Piece

Below is an example of an earlier painting which is known as a breakfast piece. Again there is a very dark background allowing the still life elements to stand out. There is a good sense of depth in this piece although the viewpoint is quite high - the items are laid out on a tabletop and the plate and curls of apple peel protrude over the edge of the table adding to the perception of depth and space. The knife has been arranged to create a diagonal which draws the eye up from the lover left into the centre of the composition. The apples and bread then draw the eye back around into the canvas. What I especially appreciate about this painting is the rendering of the different textures - the surface of the bread looks as thug you could reach out and touch it. There are beautiful reflective surfaces on the plates. The cracked cut surfaces of the cheeses. Particularly impressive is the contrast between the slightly browning flesh and the more lustrous outer skin of that curl of apple peel. 

The whole composition is laid out with cutlery and plates and nuts and fruit placed in an apparently (but not actually) haphazard way to look as though someone has just been eating.



Floris Claesz Van Dijk (1610). Oil on Canvas
(source:wikipedia.org)

Breakfast pieces typically depict everyday utensils and cutlery. There is a simplicity about the food too. These are not ostentatious displays of wealth. There is symbolism here too - these arrangements show the virtue of temperance and a modest lifestyle. Once again there is also the reminder transience - the food is all perishable just like a human life.(1), (2). In the picture above, a large dark blemish on one of the apples in the bowl serves as a further reminder of this.

Vanitas

"Vanitas vanitatum omnia vanitas"

"Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?
One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever." (4)

These are the themes that are explored in the vanitas still life. But it is not primarily the mirror-gazing, narcissistic modern meaning of vanity that is being explored. Rather the meaning of futility - the sense of human activity on earth being 'in vain'.

The painting by Pieter Claesz below I have chosen because it has a quietness about it. It is not overblown. The colours are muted harmonies of browns, ochres and lovat or sage green which suit the sombre subject matter. Claesz has used different techniques and marks to show the various textures from the soft cloth to the gently reflective surface of the solid skull. I also particularly like the delicate rendering of the irregular edges of the pages of the book.
The composition has a diagonal movement to it with the watch key the watch and the overturned glass all leading our eye up towards the main focal point of the skull.

Pieter Claesz (1630) Oil on Canvas

Every item in Claesz's painting above carries a symbolic meaning:

Watch - The passage of time

Oil lamp (snuffed out and smoking) -Brevity of life

Glass fallen on its side (and therefore empty) - life is fragile and brief

Skull - memento mori - all life ends in death and death is a leveller

Quill and Books - a reminder of man's vanity and the false values of earthly life - (we are all the same in death and learning cannot overcome death) (1)

All vanitas still lives carry the theme. That of man's achievements on earth being in vain and that we should remember that we will all be dead soon should we start to become too grandiose.

Pronk Still Life

Later in the 17th century still lives emerged which seemed to be the opposite of the breakfast pieces and the vanitas paintings in that they reflected the accumulation and display of wealth and pride in possessions. However, religion was very much part of life and the protestant, (Calvinist) doctrines of the day would still have advocated temperance so the still lives also reflect some ambivalence and guilt around these material possessions. 
Often there was reference to all of the five senses (including musical instruments as well as food, drink and beautiful objects) as subtle warning of the moral danger of gratifying all the senses while on earth. Wine was also included as a symbol of the resurrection of Christ. (1), (2)

In the 'pronkstilleven' (ostentatious still life) below by Willem Kalf there is another commonly used symbol - the partially peeled lemon. It was common to see long and complex swirls of lemon peel curling over the edge of the table in still lives in this era. Not only were they a demonstration of the virtuosity of the artist but also the lemon represented a life that is beautiful to look at but bitter to taste. (1), (2).

The work below by Willem Kalf is quite typical of his output. He preferred small groups of sumptuous objects.  He employed a chiaroscuro arrangement of the tonality for visual impact which may have been influenced by Rembrandt. His work is very much about surfaces. The intricate reflective surface of the silver work around the drinking horn. The reflective yet transparent fancy glasses. The complex folds and patterns of the luxurious Persian carpet. My eye is most drawn, however to the beautiful colouration of the sumptuous lobster. 

Willem Kalf (1653) Oil on Canvas

References:
(1) Dutch Painting in the Seventeenth Century. Madlyn Millner Kahr. Harper and Row. 1978

(2) Dutch Painting. R.H. Fuchs World of Art. Thames and Hudson 1986

(3)Essentialvermeer.com - Vermeer's painting technique: A Five Part Study http://www.essentialvermeer.com/technique/technique_overview.html#.VQ2PFEvfYYU

(4) Ecclesiastes, Chapter 1- King James Bible (online source)
http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Ecclesiastes-Chapter-1/