Carstiaen Luyckx

CARSTIAEN LUYCKX (Antwerp, 1623 – c. 1670)
“Four Doves and Two Rabbits Before an Italianate Landscape.”
Oil on canvas.
The attribution of this work has been confirmed by the specialist Dr. Fred Meijer.
Measurements: 75.4 x 93.4 cm; 87.1 x 105.6 cm (frame).
The composition features four doves and two rabbits set against an Italianate landscape, combining a naturalistic interest in the animals with an open and luminous setting. This is a relatively rare motif within Luyckx’s oeuvre and is particularly representative of his ability to depart from traditional still-life genres and develop compositions of a more original nature.
Luyckx painted flowers, garlands, luxury still lifes (pronkstillevens), hunting scenes, and vanitas compositions, as well as some still lifes of fish and depictions of animals and birds. His hunting scenes show a clear influence from Jan Fyt, while his floral and object still lifes reveal connections to artists of the stature of Jan Davidsz. de Heem and Daniel Seghers.This painting is particularly interesting due to its compositional similarity to another scene featuring doves that fetched a high price at a Sotheby’s auction in 2004, when it was attributed to Jacobus Victors. This comparison highlights the difficulty that existed for decades in correctly identifying part of Luyckx’s output, especially his animal and hunting scenes, some of which were even attributed to Jan Fyt himself.
Carstiaen Luyckx, whose name also appears as Carstian or Christiaen, was a Flemish painter born in Antwerp in 1623. He trained with the still-life painter Philip de Marlier beginning in 1640 and, from 1642 onward, with Frans Francken III. However, his mature style shows the influence primarily of Jan Davidsz. de Heem, Daniel Seghers, and Jan Fyt. He was a member of the Guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp from 1645, and in 1646 he is documented as a court painter to King Philip IV of Spain. He remained based in Antwerp for much of the 1650s and collaborated with artists such as David Teniers II and Nicolaes van Verendael. His later career is less well known, and it has been suggested that he may have moved to France, possibly to the northern part of the country. His known body of work is relatively small: only two dated works are currently known, both from 1650.