The exhibition of the Hermitage collection of unique paintings of David Teniers the Younger is dedicated to 400 anniversary of the birth of the Flemish artist

• David Teniers the Younger
  Shepherdess. 1650-e
  Flanders
  Oil on canvas
  Source: hermitagemuseum.org

The Hermitage continues the exhibition "Flemish eye of David Teniers the Younger (1610-1690), dedicated to 400 anniversary of the birth of the Flemish artist. A unique collection of paintings by masters of the Hermitage - one of the best in the world, different thematic diversity of products and a high artistic level. The Museum has thirty-three paintings, created mainly in the heyday of the painter (1640-1650-E). Among those represented at the anniversary exhibition of the Hermitage paintings by masters of many genuine masterpieces. They show the main facets of art Teniers and allow to disclose the originality of his style.

David Teniers the Younger became famous as a great landscape painter and his inventions master scenes of peasant life, which showed the inexhaustible possibilities of the domestic scene. He became the best traditions of the Netherlands genre painting of the XVI century. The artist enjoyed huge fame in his lifetime. He was treated kindly by the powerful, who literally inundated painter orders. Patrons were Teniers Archduke Leopold Wilhelm and Spain's King Philip IV.

artist was born in 1610 in Antwerp in the family of the painter and dealer pictures of David Teniers the Elder (1582-1649), learned from his father in the workshop which started its activities in 1626. In the years 1632/33, David Teniers the Younger was a member of the Antwerp Guild of St.. Luke.

young wizard has worked in a variety of genres, he painted portraits of historical figures, group portraits of members of the shooting guilds, religious, allegorical and mythological compositions, genre scenes, still lifes, pastoral landscapes.

In early 1630-ies Teniers was influenced by the famous master of domestic scenes of Adrian Brouwer (1605/06-1638), as evidenced by the "Peasants playing dice." But he gradually ceased to imitate Brouwer. Develop his style helped the young painter acquaintance with the works of Pieter Bruegel the Elder.

In a sense, Teniers "affinity" with the tradition of art by breygelevskogo marriage in 1637 to Anna Brueghel, the granddaughter of Pieter Bruegel the Elder and daughter of Jan Brueghel the Velvet (1568-1625). The main part of the dowry of Anne made drawings and paintings of her grandfather and father. The study of these works has been crucial in the development of genre painting of Teniers.

In the year of his marriage to Anne Breughel Teniers wrote his first painting on the theme of "Peasant Wedding". Have survived five of his compositions on this theme, including the Hermitage, performed in 1650. They Teniers, based on breygelevskoy tradition, the table showed a bride without bridegroom. Like Brueghel, he looks at his characters with irony. It is no coincidence many of his works, including five in the Hermitage, an essential element is attached to the wall, drawing a male head. It serves the original card Teniers and is perceived as an extra, in addition to the signature, the author's character.

Since 1637 began a mature stage of the master. Teniers create a peaceful, quiet by nature paintings, which have no aggressive character and conflict, preferring to portray the action is happening not in the interior and outdoors, in nature ('peasants playing in the balls "). Creating a chronicle of the Flemish daily life, an artist with skill and colorfully detailed scenes of rural labor passed - harvesting, sheep shearing, hunting, fishing, bleaching canvases, caring for livestock, and many others, and along with it - rest of the peasants (The Hermitage two songs in 1646 and 1648 years based on the story "Village Festival »).

• David Teniers the Younger
  Peasants playing in the balls. End of 1640 x
  Flanders
  Oil on canvas
  Source: hermitagemuseum.org
• David Teniers the Younger
  Village Festival. 1646 Flanders
  Oil on canvas
  transferred from the old to the new canvas in 1868
  Bottom left caption: DAVID TENIERS FEC
  on the banner with the image of St. George's date: 1646
  Source: hermitagemuseum.org

In 1640-ies the transformation of stylistic devices wizard. At this time, Teniers Strive for simplicity, balance and clarity of the composition. In place of monochrome painting that dominates the 1630-ies, came bright, juicy flavor with a golden tone. Later, in 1650-ies, golden tone gradually gave way to more elegant, silver-bluish. In the current decade, these artistic manner wizard worked until the end of life.

Teniers Representations of the modern artist, genre painter put it in the Hermitage painting "Painter in his studio" (1641). Arguing with colleagues, idealizes his appearance, he contrasted his character realist artists working from nature, but trust above all his vision of the world.

to the undisputed masterpieces of Teniers is "group portrait of members Rifle Guild Oude Voetboog («Old Crossbow") in Antwerp, written in 1643. An important feature of the Hermitage's work lies in the fact that a group portrait (in the picture, there are about two hundred characters) is placed by the artist in the urban landscape, three-quarters of the space is occupied by architecture. Dominant architectural form is distinguished from the Hermitage canvas similar to the plot, but earlier in time group portraits by Frans Hals and Rembrandt, in whose work was dominated by portraits of the problem. To order Teniers the guild was the first great and responsible work, with which he coped brilliantly. Now placed in the meeting room of the building guild "Old Crossbow." Creating such a prestigious paintings nominated David Teniers the Younger in the first row of Flemish painters.

• David Teniers the Younger
  Kitchen. 1646 Flanders
  Oil on canvas
  Source: hermitagemuseum . org

reached the pores of prosperity, in 1646 the artist wrote a great, monumental painting "Kitchen" - another masterpiece of the Hermitage collection. Product synthesizes a household, the allegorical, portrait, genre and still life. The plot of "Kitchen" gave Teniers the opportunity to portray a single track at once an allegory of four elements. Land and water are fruits, poultry and various species of fish. Fire - brazier on the table and a fireplace. Air symbolizes the figure falconer with falcon in his hand.

In 1651 Leopold Wilhelm appointed David Teniers the Younger a court painter and curator Pinakothek. The Master and his family moved to Brussels, where he immediately proceeded to implement the many obligations. He participated in the acquisition of paintings, made a detailed inventory of works of art reproduced in the paintings of masterpieces of the collection. Leopold Wilhelm gave the image its Pinakothek members of the imperial family in Vienna and Madrid, thus contributing to the fame and popularity of the artist.

in 1651 on behalf of Leopold Wilhelm Teniers was in England. In London, he probably saw one of three allegorical portrait by Anthony van Dyck Lady Digby Venice in the form of Prudence "(ca. 1633-1641). After this trip Teniers created the track "Allegory of Prudence, conquering earthly vanity." Moral and didactic motives are not unique to this painting masters. So, the theme of overcoming sensual temptations arise in the works of Teniers on the image of St. Anthony. Two Hermitage compositions based on the story "The Temptation of St.. Anthony "- iconographic (especially image in them" evil forces ", witches, demons, weird animals), and go back to the works of Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516), but in their own way interpreted Teniers. If the image of the main character, created by Bosch, is endowed with courage and steadfastness of the spirit, the works of Teniers Hermitage St. Anthony gives the impression of a weak-willed, infirm old man.

It should be noted another area of the artist. In Flanders during the XVII century were popular images of church interiors. Teniers often wrote for them staffazh, "enlivening" figures of people, empty space. Hermitage "Interior of Antwerp Cathedral" is an example of such work Teniers the Younger and Peter Neffsa (1620 - after 1675).

Pastoral scene is a kind of genre, are on display paired his paintings "Shepherd "and" Shepherdess "(1650's). Their characters seem to be young actors, dressed in theatrical costumes and skillfully performing their assigned roles. The charm of youth, delightfully transmitted by the artist, save here Teniers from appearing later excessive sentimentality in the treatment of characters.

Creativity Teniers completed a brilliant development of the Flemish paintings of the XVII century and in many ways anticipated the style of those artists of the genre painters began XVIII century (notably by Antoine Watteau), who worked mainly in small forms of painting. Legacy of Teniers is extremely large. The catalogs of museums and private galleries refers to hundreds of works by the artist.

The exhibition is accompanied directory (State Hermitage Publishing House, 2010). The author of the catalog and the exhibition curator Natalia P. Babin, a senior researcher at the Department of Western European Art, PhD.

exhibition runs until January 16, 2011.

Source: hermitagemuseum.org