Hendrik Frans Schaefels – The Boat Partie

Hendrik Frans Schaefels – The Boat Partie, Belgium, 1853Oil on wood. Large-scale representation of a group of aristocratic merrymakers on a boat, surrounded by high, shady trees. One man is on his feet, holding a gold goblet aloft as he pours wine from a silver carafe, while, opposite him, a man presents the delicacies on a plate. Another partie can be seen on a boat in the background to the right, under the shade of a splendid canopy. Signed and dated "Heindrick F.(?) Schaefels 1853" at the bottom right. In a fire-gilt frame with lavish stucco, covered in velvet on the inside in rococo style, which has broken away in several places on one side. Signed "H. Schaefels" on a strip of leather at the bottom centre. A brass plaque on the back with a dedication to Dr. Alfred Lindemann from the board of directors of the Elisabeth Hospital in Essen. An old, illegible note stuck between two red wax seals on the central beam of the stretcher. Size of the picture 69 x 56 cm, framed 92 x 77 cm.Hendrick Frans Schaefels (1827 - 1904), a Belgian painter from Antwerp, gained renown for his seascapes, genre scenes and historical pictures, which he painted in Romantic style, particularly popular in Belgium at that time.Condition: II +