(b. 1566, Olomouc, d. 1638, Frankfurt am Main)

Still-life with Parrot - Oil on copper, 78 x 67 cm Alte Pinakothek, Munich

Flegel, Germany's first purely still-life painter, is believed to have worked in the studio of the Flemish artist Lukas van Valckenborch as a painter of flowers, metalware and fruit, a fact that would certainly appear to be borne out by this painting.

The very Netherlandish-looking bouquet of flowers with tulips, carnations, roses and narcissi, is as superbly painted as the silver vase ornamented with golden mascarons in which it has been placed. The different qualities of silver, gold and pewter, their various degrees of brilliance, hardness and finish have been rendered in painstaking detail. The heavy pewter plates are juxtaposed with an elegant, fine-rimmed silver dish and a golden-lidded chalice bearing a fine statuette of Mars. The blade of the knife at the edge of the table, the dish of hazelnuts, the lid and edge of the brown earthenware jug - all are variations on the artist's theme.

The display of foodstuffs seems less impressive at first glance, and arranged almost at random. Everything seems to be arranged by pure chance, so much so in fact that an allegorical interpretation seems unlikely. Though the composition may appear purely cumulative, it is nevertheless precisely calculated, especially in the masterly distribution of colour highlights.

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Author: FLEGEL, Georg Title: Still-life with Parrot Time-line: 1601-1650 School: German Form: painting