The atelier, 100x117cm, oil on canvas, signed on the globe

This work of art is rare in the sense that it bears the signature of Jacques de Claeuw, the great Dutch vanitas painter.

Vanitas is a genre of painting that represents the transient nature of life. Works belonging to this genre can be found in the world’s most important museums and this particular painting depicts a busy art atelier with innumerous symbolic meanings.

The signed globe reflects the Dutch colonial possessions all over the world. The student sat in front of the sculpture is listening to the teacher’s advice, whose finger indicates the errors and the changes needed to be made in clay.

The sketches scattered across the floor, like the busts and paintings hung all over the room, reveal a gratifying aesthetic confusion. The oriental rug and the pillar provide an interesting colour contrast.

The other characters in the background give the environment a sense of depth and of chaos, just like an artistic atelier of the time should have been.

Condition report available on request