From the late Middle Ages onwards, a diverse still life art developed in the Netherlands. Animal and hunting still lifes combined realistic depiction with moral symbolism.
Symbolism in animal depiction
Since the end of the Middle Ages, both animate and inanimate nature had been the subject of Dutch art. This was to develop into an independent genre, still life painting. This in turn was subdivided into several sub-genres, which resulted in an extremely wide range of variations in line with the market.
These include animal and hunting still lifes, which occupy a special position between animate and inanimate matter in that the escaped life still seems to be perceptible. This is all the more noticeable as the prey is presented in front of a dark, almost black niche and stands out effectively with its extremely detailed fur and plumage. The brown hare shown here with a few snipe, which completely dominates the picture, is known above all for its love of reproduction. Regularly depicted with captured birds, it symbolizes together with them the lust for flesh, a warning often repeated in the art of the time.
The zoologically faithful depiction of animals by specialist painters such as Dirk Valkenburg formed a genre of its own, ranging from domestic huntable game to precious inhabitants of foreign continents radiating an aura of the exotic. This reflects the pride of ownership and need for luxury typical of the Amsterdam upper class in the late phase of the so-called 'Golden Age'. The enormous prosperity resulting from overseas trade, which these patricians enjoyed together with their privileged political position, had led them to adopt an aristocratic lifestyle, which was expressed in sumptuously furnished townhouses and comfortable country estates at the gates of the metropolis.
Text: Ulrich Becker