Attributed to Jan van Wechelen

Flemish school, ca. 1560. Attributed to HANS VAN WECHLEN (ca. 1537- ca. 1570).
"Banquet scene before a Renaissance villa in an imaginary landscape".
Oil on panel. Cradled.
In good condition.
Provenance: Michel Segoura Gallery, Paris.
Sale in Paris at the Hôtel Drouot, Kohn studio, December 11, 1995, no. 15 (as Hans van Wechelen).
Note: Our painting is catalogued in the R.K.D. (Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentarie) with the permanent number
Documentarie) with the permanent number 7448 (as anonymous from the end of the 16th century).
Measurements: 33 x 48 cm; 49,5 x 64 cm (frame).

This is a splendid Flemish panel from the middle of the 16th century, attributed to Hans van Wechelen or his closest circle. The painting transcends the genre of landscape itself, displaying a sort of microcosm that aims to combine earthly pleasures (the banquet, music, conversation) and the humanist ideals of the Renaissance (admiration for Antiquity and openness to the world).

The composition displays a meticulous architectural and landscape fantasy, typical of the northern mannerist taste. It is masterfully structured in three differentiated planes, using an atmospheric perspective and an elevated point of view that allows the viewer to embrace the vastness of the scene. The foreground is the scene of the most refined human activity. A large group of ladies and gentlemen dressed in Renaissance fashion enjoy a banquet in the open air, shaded by trees, under a pavilion attached to a late Renaissance villa, rich in large windows and ornamental details. Other groups converse or stroll, while several figures mounted on horseback and accompanied by hunting dogs enliven the scene with a courtly and playful air. The meticulousness of the oil on panel allows the artist to recreate the details of the clothes, the jewels and the expressions of the characters.

Dominating the center is a majestic monumental column, evocative of imperial vestiges, which visually organizes the scene and marks the transition to the idealized distant city. The monument, crowned by a statue, is an architectural fantasy, a capriccio, evoking the grandeur of Classical Antiquity. Its insertion in a landscape reminiscent of the Flemish landscape creates a fascinating dialogue between Northern Europe and the Mediterranean world, between the observed reality and the dreamed ideal. In this second plane, the scene becomes more active with riders on horseback, walkers and various figures that populate the paths.

In the background, a vast landscape unfolds and is lost in the distance. A populous city, with its walls, towers and rooftops, spreads out at the foot of misty mountains. Beyond, a bay or estuary opens to the sea, crisscrossed by sailing ships, suggesting trade, travel and connection to the wider world. The dramatic, cloud-laden sky is illuminated by a twilight that tinges the horizon with pink tones, infusing the scene with a melancholy atmosphere.

The attribution to Hans van Wechelen is consistent with his known style; he was a master at painting figures, often inserting them into the landscapes of other artists such as Cornelis van Dalem. In this panel, the figures are lively and skillfully integrated into the environment, demonstrating great narrative skill.

In short, this painting is a jewel of the Flemish school that synthesizes the ambitions of its time. It is a window into an idealized world where nature and civilization, leisure and urban life, Nordic tradition and fascination with the classical, coexist in a visually dazzling and profoundly erudite harmony.

Jan van Wechelen was a Flemish painter and draughtsman active in Antwerp in the mid-16th century, born about 1530 and died around 1570. Although details about his life are scarce, he is known primarily for his landscapes and genre scenes. He is first mentioned in 1557 in the records of the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke. He is especially recognized for his collaborations with the painter Cornelis van Dalem, for whom he painted the figures within his landscapes. Van Wechelen was a talented character painter, and his figures were perfectly suited to Van Dalem's landscapes. An example of their collaboration is the work "Landscape with Nomads". Much of Jan van Wechelen's work was destroyed due to iconoclasm and the wars of the 16th century. The surviving works consist mostly of landscapes, religious scenes and some genre scenes, such as "Peasants Feasting in a Kermesse Village". An architectural painting of the interior of a church is also attributed to him. Despite the scarcity of surviving works, Van Wechelen's work enjoyed an excellent reputation in the early 17th century, being collected by such prominent figures as Rubens and art collectors Cornelis van der Geest and Pieter Stevens.