Fruit, Flowers and Dead Birds

Wybrand Hendriks was a Dutch painter, primarily known for his portraits, landscapes, and copies after older masters, such as flower still lifes in the manner of Jan van Huysum. He also had trained in a workshop that supplied decorative wall paintings for the elegant homes of wealthy art lovers.

Today we present a beautiful example of his still lifes. The artist has piled up his bouquet of fruit and flowers against a soft, green background of woodland trees until it tips sideways and tumbles down the canvas on a steep diagonal, ending in the forms of the three dead birds. An exotic pineapple sits at the top of the arrangement, its weight appearing to have caused the mini avalanche. It’s a multisensory painting and evokes the taste, touch, and smell as much as the sight of so much abundance.