Friday, November 11, 2011

More about the Dutch Masters of Still Life…


The Dutch Masters of Still Life painted about the riches of their patrons. Holland became an affluent country from commerce and their colonies.  Dutch merchants and the new rich, indulged commissioning paintings that displayed their newly acquired riches. 
Willem Claesz Heda was one of those painters. He painted still lifes with subdued, muted almost monochromatic colors. he was also known for his Ontbijt (Dutch) pieces or breakfast paintings, another contemporary painter that profusely used that theme was Pieter Claesz.  
They painted Dutch typical food items laid sometimes nicely sometimes not. The painting at the left is the creation of Abraham van Beijeren or Beyeren. The one at right is my own version which is not meant to be an exact replica but to use a similar composition and objects. My goal is to obtain that old master look. To say that the lighting was challenging is an understatement, but that’s part of the experience and the fun. You can definitely have more control in a painting than a photograph. Regardless, re-creating these wonderful masterpieces have been a lot of fun. Feel free to share this post in Facebook or Twitter.



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