Artwork
Still life. Breakfast Piece in a Stone Niche
Still life. Breakfast Piece in a Stone Niche is an unspecified painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Jan Hendricksz. van Zuylen. It dates from 1638 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst. Jan Hendricksz.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
These elements are characteristic of the still life genre, focusing on the representation of everyday dining items and luxury goods of the period.
The painting depicts a breakfast arrangement set within a stone niche. The composition features specific objects including a rummer glass, a tazza, a lemon, and Kraak porcelain. These elements are characteristic of the still life genre, focusing on the representation of everyday dining items and luxury goods of the period. The inclusion of the stone niche provides an architectural frame for the displayed vessels and foodstuffs.
Technique & Style
The painting employs oil on canvas, laid out in a horizontal format measuring 63.4 cm in height and 52.0 cm in width. Handling is precise and controlled, typical of Dutch still-life practice, with careful modeling of light across reflective surfaces such as the glass rummer and tazza. Stylistic qualities include a pronounced illusionistic niche framing the composition, enhancing spatial recession through the use of a stone arch and shadowed background.
The color palette is subdued yet luminous, dominated by warm browns and ochers punctuated by the cool whites of porcelain and the bright yellow of the lemon peel. Brushwork is smooth, with meticulous detailing in the rendering of textures, from the translucency of glass to the crisp folds of the tablecloth.
History & Provenance
The painting Still life. Breakfast Piece in a Stone Niche was created by Jan Hendricksz. van Zuylen. It is currently held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
The work depicts a niche containing a rummer, tazza, lemon, and Kraak porcelain. No specific date of creation, commission details, or prior ownership history is provided in the available sources.
The work titled Still life. Breakfast Piece in a Stone Niche is a painting by Jan Hendricksz. van Zuylen, classified as a still‑life. It is housed in the collection of Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen, where it is listed under the museum’s inventory of paintings.
The museum’s catalogue records the dimensions as 634 cm by 520 cm and describes the composition as featuring a niche, a rummer, a tazza, a lemon and Kraak porcelain. No separate accession number is provided in the available records, and the piece has not been noted in major temporary exhibitions according to the sources.
Overview
Jan Hendricksz. van Zuylen's painting, Still life. Breakfast Piece in a Stone Niche, created around 1638, presents a detailed arrangement of domestic items. This work exemplifies the Dutch Golden Age tradition of still-life painting, focusing on everyday objects meticulously rendered within a defined architectural setting.
It offers a glimpse into the material culture and artistic conventions of the period, inviting close observation of its carefully composed elements.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Jan Hendricksz. van Zuylen (1613–1644) was an artist, born in Utrecht.
