Antique Jan Fyt 17c Bentvueghel Flemish Baroque Old Master Game Birds Partridge Kingfisher Mallard Still Life Original European Oil Painting

Original, antique, 17th century Flemish Baroque still life painting of sporting game: a partridge, kingfisher, mallard ducks, and game hen oil painting on canvas, in the manner of old master animalier, Jan Fyt, (1609-1661). This still life painting is entirely characteristic of Jan Fyt's delicate and fluid background brushwork; subject is also typical for the artist. Delicate mastery in the soft details of the partridge, in a similar composition as many of the artist's still life paintings of game birds, signal a mature work by the master painter. 


Jan Fyt, (Johannes Fijt), a Flemish painter, draughtsman, and etcher, was born in March of 1611 in Antwerp, Brabant, Spanish Netherlands, (a territory which is now in Belgium]. Jan Fyt was a Flemish Baroque painter known for his technical mastery in the rendering of animals.

Apprenticed to a painter when scarcely more than 10 years old, Fyt was accepted into the Guild of St. Luke as a master at age 20 and over the next 30 years produced a vast number of pictures with facility and power. His forte was the depiction of animal life in its most varied forms.

One of the leading animaliers of the 17th century, he was known for his refined depictions of animals as game, and his lush hunting pieces.

Jan Fyt was born in Antwerp as the son of a wealthy merchant. Fyt was baptized in March 1611, and in 1621, Fyt was registered at the Antwerp Guild of St Luke, as an apprentice of Hans van den Berghe, (also referred to as 'Jan van den Bergh'); a Dutch painter and draughtsman who had trained with Goltzius in Haarlem, and later with Rubens, in Antwerp. Fyt then likely completed his training with the leading Antwerp animal painter Frans Snyders, from 1629 to 1631. Jan Fyt became a master of the Antwerp Guild of St Luke in 1630.

After setting out on a trip to Southern Europe in 1633, Fyt stopped for a while in Paris. He traveled on to Italy the following year. He worked in Venice for the prominent Sagredo and Contarini families. During his stay in Italy, he most likely visited Naples, Florence and Genoa. He resided in Rome in 1635. Here he joined the Bentvueghels, an association of mainly Dutch and Flemish artists working in Rome. The Italian art historian Pellegrino Antonio Orlandi stated in his Abecedario pittorico of 1704, that Fyt also spent time in Spain and London.

Fyt joined the Guild of Romanists, in 1650. The Guild of Romanists was a society of notables and artists which was active in Antwerp, from the 16th to 18th century. It was a condition of membership that the member had visited Rome. In the year 1652 the Guild chose Fyt as its Dean.

Fyt’s animal still life paintings are generally more refined than those of Frans Snyders, as he catered primarily to the tastes of an aristocratic clientele. His palette was influenced by his exposure to Italian art, and was more striking than that of Snyders. Fyt’s Baroque compositional style differed also from those of Snyders. Fyt was particularly skilled in the delicate rendering of the various textures of the fur and plumage of the animals he depicted.

Fyt innovated the genre of the hunting piece by moving the scene in which the dead game was displayed from an indoor table top to an open landscape.

Jan Fyt married Françoise van de Sande on March 22nd, 1654, and the couple had four children. He passed on in Antwerp September 11th, 1661.


Select cataloged comparable paintings with similar game bird compositions, with striking similarities, by Jan Fyt, include (online references):

http://www.artnet.com/WebServices/images/ll00077lldj7xFFgbNECfDrCWvaHBOcV5J/jan-fyt-a-hunting-still-life-with-a-partridge,-a-kingfisher,-a-goldfinch-and-a-starling.jpg

Ref: https://image.invaluable.com/housePhotos/christies/15/108415/H0027-L00917061.jpg

http://www.wikigallery.org/paintings/386001-386500/386383/painting1.jpg

Ref: http://static.artuk.org/w800h800/NG/NG_NG_NG1003.jpg

http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/436427


Jan Fyt, attribution
(1609-1661)
Flemish, Baroque
Oil on Canvas
Still Life
Partridge, Kingfisher, Mallard Ducks, Game Hen
Dead Game
Oil on Canvas
19.5"X26", plus frame
Painting framed in original carved wood gold painted, antique frame
Good to very good condition, for age. Very small chip at the very bottom left on painting, along bottom edge. Frame has very small chip, as well. Review images for details.

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