1594
gouache
vellum
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Dominant colour
Plate 51: Crossbeak, Chough, Bee-Eater, and Other Birds is a 1594 gouache by Joris Hoefnagel, a Renaissance work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This image shows a circle of seven birds perched on branches and rocks. Some are bright—like the blue and pink one on the right—while others are dark, almost black. The background is simple: a few bare twigs and a hint of green grass. The whole scene sits inside a gold-edged circle, like a framed window into nature. The artist used fine details to show each bird’s feathers and tiny claws. The Latin words at the top and bottom sound like old sayings, maybe about the birds themselves. Try looking up watercolor, glazing to see how artists build color layer by layer.
Joris Hoefnagel or Georg Hoefnagel (1542 – 24 July 1601) was a Flemish painter, printmaker, miniaturist, draftsman and merchant.
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