Spanish school; 17th century.

Spanish school; XVII century.
"Still life of meat".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Measurements: 74 x 96 cm; 99 x 118 cm (frame).
In this canvas the author offers us a still life of hunting rooted in the baroque tradition of the genre, as much for its composition as for the chromatic and light treatment, the care of the qualities and the loose and impastoed brushstroke. The seventeenth century became the golden age of the still life and the quality of this work shows the long validity of the models for the genre established in the seventeenth century, especially in the first half of the century. Thus, we see a composition formed by a few simple objects, organized on a flat surface and highlighted on a neutral and dark background, arranged without apparent organization, although in reality their placement obeys a solid geometric scheme.

The Spanish school is one of the most appreciated in the development of the still life. Many of the still life painters were driven by the desire to rival the legendary naturalism of classical work, especially during the early years of the century considering the imitation of the classics to be a corollary of the imitation of nature. The hyperbolic descriptions of paintings in classical literature placed great value on mimesis or imitation of the natural world. This challenge helped to explain the elaborate naturalism of still life painting, from its very emergence as an independent and defined genre, as well as the illusionistic character of some of its earliest examples in the still life school. In this particular case, the piece stands out for its austere and realistic character that captures the viewer's attention in a completely sober way, avoiding any boast that does not refer to the quality of the artist's technique.