Flemish.

Hey there,

So after all this modern art, I thought I needed some more accesable art. And by that I mean paintings. Paintings are probably my favorite medium of art, since they are the most traditional.

So I've heard about this small exhibition about flemish art at the Institut  Néerlandais, the Netherland's Cultural Institution in Paris. It was called "Un Univers intime. Tableaux de la Collection Frits Lugt" and it was A-MAZING!! First of all it was the perfect sized exhibition so you could totally enjoy and take all of it in. Second it was kind of a secret tip, so there weren't as many people. Very pleasant. Third - the space was absolutely beautiful and put to good use. And then, fourth, I have never seen an exhibition guide be so good. Seriously, it was one of the best organized, planed, executed and best explained exhibition I ever had the pleasure of visiting! Plus I really enjoy that era of painting so that was a bonus aswell. Frits Lugt mostly collected flemish and dutch paintings and artists of the golden age and gives a wonderful overview of painting in that time and area.

One painting that especially caught my eye was a tableau "Festoons, Masks and Rosettes of Shells" by a so far unknown artist to me, Jan van Kessel Senior in 1656. It a very peculiar display of alot of differnet kinds and types of seashells. The shells in the picture are arranged so they build different kinds of festoons, masks and rosettes. It is the only known work that represents so many different kinds of decorative and anthropomorphe assemblies of shells at that time. You have to imagine, that at that time it was not easy to have a full knowledge of different kinds of domestic and exotic shells. The artist probably had to collect and find and make sketches of shells for a long time to aquire such an extensive collection of shells. It made me be amazed and giggle at the same time! 

Of course there were alot of traditional flemish landscapes and peasant-life themed paintings and also some portraits. But the oeuvre by Kessel Senior was my favorite one.