Butterfly, Caterpillar, Moth, Insects, and Currants Gm-00039301

Jan van Kessel II (Flemish, 1626–1679) Luminous red and white currants provide perches for various species of insects, while others crawl and hover over the page. Moths, beetles, wasps, flies, a ladybird, and a caterpillar are set in rows. Jan van Kessel I was one of the first artists to create horizontally arranged drawings of fruits and flowers, giving structure to essentially scientific analyses of insects. Instead of a specific setting, he preferred to use a blank ground, which allowed him to arrange the insects and fruits according to shifting yet interconnected vantage points.

Van Kessel probably made this tight drawing in the studio, based on close sketches from nature. He used bodycolor to show volume, as in the luminous, patterned wings of the moths. Transparent washes represent the light effects, cast from a light source that creates dark shadows along the right sides of wings and underneath the insect's bodies, lifting them from the ground. Van Kessel assembled these insects to emphasize each specimen's crisp shapes and markings.

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Our Antiqued Museum Frame in Gold is a high-quality frame made of solid wood, featuring traditional 19th-century cast plaster moulded details and closed corners. These frames are works of art in themselves, each with a unique patina. The hand-rubbed corners and gold finish evoke the elegance of times past. Your selected image is printed on German art paper with archival inks and mounted to quality art board within the frame. Plexiglass is added for print protection and the back is covered with Kraft paper and a hanger is supplied ready to hang..

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Artwork in this collection is from The J. Paul Getty Museum. Reproduction rights are reserved by the copyright owner and used under license by Archivea GmbH.