After Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568-1625) - Wooded landscapes with figures, horses with riders, carriages and cattle, against a light blue sky

Presented here is a pair of paintings that shows us two wooded landscapes with figures, horses with riders, carriages, cattle and a city in the distance, all set against a light blue sky. These images are strongly reminiscent of Early Netherlandish painting and especially of Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568-1625) . And indeed both representations can originally be traced back to him, as they are (loosely) based on paintings by him. \r
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Both of these subjects are separate representations within his oeuvre, but here they are represented as a pair. This is visible when comparing the respectively right and left side of the panels with each other. The panels are presumably painted in the 18th century by a painter working in the style of Jan Brueghel the Elder (therefore called 'after') . Original paintings by him are of course almost all in the collection of museums. \r
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The fore ground is rendered in brown tones, and the mid ground is brightly lit by the light of the sun, whilst the background fades into a clear blue. The artist depicts the sun just behind the windmill, simultaneously lending a lighter accent to the sky and accentuating the windmill structure. \r
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The 'left' panel shows us a group of figures on their way to town. There is a horse rider, a carriage with people, a man with a dog and a man holding a cow by a cord. On the left is a characteristic Dutch windmill. In the distance we can see a house, a row of hills in the far distance and a light blue sky filled with yellow from the sun. \r
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This representation can be traced back to the subject of the so-called "Spada group", named after the first painting of this kind, which represents windmills set in a wider landscape, located in the Galleria Spada in Rome, Italy. See also Klaus Ertz, p. 160-168 and 320-335. \r
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The 'right' panel shows a man hoarding a group of cows, next to a carriage with a horse rider alongside. In the front is a group of people sitting and conversing. In the far distance is a city, painted in light green against a light blue sky. On the right is a large tree which is used as a so-called "repoussoir", in which an object is placed in front of the picture plane to create the illusion of depth. \r
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This representation can be traced back to an example in the Städel Museum in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, under inventory number 1220. Our panel follows this example (which is dated to ca. 1605-1610) quite closely, with a few notable differences. \r
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Both panels contain traces of signatures. Though it cannot be established if these are indeed the painters the panels should be attributed to. Therefore they are called 'after' their creative creator. The 'right' panel contains traces of "Th Michau", which could be referring to Theobald Michau (Flemish, 1676–1765) . The 'left' panel contains an illegible signature (as it is covered by the frame) , which according to the restorer reads as something like "T Ortunan Helenah". \r
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The dimensions of the panels are circa 26,8 x 38,7 cm. The dimensions of the paintings including the frames are circa 36,7 x 48,2 x 4 cm. The panels have recently been restored to ensure preservation. There are retouches throughout the panels. Primarily on the left one. For example the ground around the Mill and around the Forest to the right, making its way downwards, have been retouched earlier already, as these were weaker parts of paint. Throughout the image are smaller sized new retouches present. The panels were cleaned, retouched and revarnished. \r
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The frames are most probably of a later age, according to its style this would be the 19th century (or later) . The fixation of the panels within the frames was readjusted to allow the panels to shrink and expand due to the humidity/temperature conditions and as such to prevent damage by cracking. \r
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The shipping costs amount is due to insurance and delivery by signature, the costs of the packaging material will be a courtesy. I have been selling on Catawiki since 2015. This pair of paintings would be an addition to any collection. \r
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Literature\r
Jan Brueghel der Ältere (1568-1625) : kritischer Katalog der Gemälde. Klaus Ertz, Christa Nitze-Ertz. Lingen: Luca, 2008-2010. \r
#artmasterpiece. Q2