Flemish school of the 17th century.

Flemish school of the seventeenth century.
Attributed to the circle of PIETER CLAESZ (Burgsteinfurt, ca. 1597-Haarlem, 1660).
"Still life with jug, vase and bowl with fruit."
Oil on canvas.
Relined.
Published in the catalog "Reality, time and artifice. Still life and vanitas in the baroque culture" Institutional exhibition in Cultural Cordón - Caja de Burgos (2021-2022), pg 100-101.
Measurements: 39 x 46 cm; 51 x 59 cm (frame).

A still life published and exhibited institutionally, this "Still life with jug, glass and bowl with fruits", ascribed to the circle of Pieter Claesz, represents with elegance and technical quality the refinement of the Dutch still life of the Golden Age.

Included and reproduced in the official catalog of the exhibition "Reality, time and artifice. Naturaleza muerta y vanitas en la cultura barroca" (Cultural Cordón - Caja de Burgos, 2021-2022, pp. 100-101), the work has bibliographic support and recent museum presence, an element that notably increases its interest in the specialized market.

The composition responds to the model of the ontbijtje developed in Haarlem in the first half of the 17th century: a sober scene, with an intimate atmosphere, constructed from a restrained chromatic range and an extraordinary attention to light. The metal jug, the partially filled glass and the earthenware bowl with peaches are arranged with asymmetrical balance on a bare table, standing out against a dark background that enhances the depth and visual silence characteristic of this genre.

The material treatment is particularly successful: the controlled reflections of the metal, the transparency of the glass and the velvety skin of the fruit reveal a meticulous execution and a clear affinity with the production of Claesz's environment. The precise brushstrokes and subtle glazes build a dense and enveloping atmosphere that gives the whole a remarkable aesthetic presence despite its contained format.

Beyond its formal beauty, the work participates in the symbolic discourse of the Baroque vanitas: the ripe fruit alludes to the fleetingness of time and the ephemeral nature of the material, integrating meaning and technical virtuosity in a fully Baroque synthesis.

Pieter Claesz, active in Haarlem, was a key figure in the consolidation of the monochrome still life, and his work is preserved today in museums such as the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Prado Museum, the National Gallery or the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The present canvas is integrated with stylistic coherence in his immediate circle.