Galerie Dreyfus
87
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MARTIN VAN CLEVE THE ELDER (ANTWERP 1527 – ANTWERP 1581)
Sce…
See original version (French)
87
-
MARTIN VAN CLEVE THE ELDER (ANTWERP 1527 – ANTWERP 1581)
Sce…
See original version (French)
Estimate €400,000 - €500,000
Voluntary lot
Description
MARTIN VAN CLEVE THE ELDER
(ANTWERP 1527 – ANTWERP 1581)
Scene from a village fair with a performance of the farce
‘Een cluyte van Plaeyerwater’ (A Clod of Plaeyerwater)
c. 1600
Oil on canvas
170 x 291 cm.
We would like to thank Dr Klaus Ertz for attributing this work to Martin Van Cleef the Elder, as shown in the photograph
Provenance
Private collection, Paris.
Here, people are dancing, feasting and having fun! In this Flemish village, the festivities are in full swing.
Even the weather is on our side, glorious despite it being winter. Everyone has come out dressed in their finest
attire; stalls have been set up and there is even a stage, complete with wings, where a
lively farce is being performed. Onlookers crowd round in droves, engrossed in the plot. However, there are
plenty of attractions, scattered throughout the village and filling the entire canvas to
such an extent that the eye doesn’t know where to look. Whilst in the foreground a giant cauldron serves
soup to the revellers, nearby people are seated at tables drinking and playing cards. Further on,
people are locked in a melee. On all sides, people are dancing, in a farandole or in pairs, to the sound of drums
and bagpipes. The deeper one delves into the composition, the more one discovers new
scenes—mundane, even trivial, yet always picturesque—which bear witness to the atmosphere
of this village fair at the dawn of the 17th century in the prosperous Flemish countryside. However,
a company of crossbowmen marches in the background, reminding us of the turmoil caused by
the recent wars of religion. The great Flemish tradition of fairground scenes originated
in the 16th century and reached its peak with Pieter Brueghel the Elder (1525–1569). True
to this popular spirit, many artists – such as Martin van Cleve here – followed in his
footsteps, in turn depicting these village festivities teeming with characters, within
which the viewer’s eye never ceases to discover new, colourful details. Here, the painting
is notable for featuring, at its centre, a theatre scene in which the actors
are performing the popular farce ‘Een cluyte van Playerwater’. This age-old theme of adultery
tells the story of how, hidden in a travelling merchant’s sack, a jealous husband discovers
his unfaithful wife sitting at a table with her lover, the village priest. The popularity of this subject is
evidenced by the number of extant examples, of which the art historian Klaus Ertz lists
twenty-eight versions. Whilst the painting is known through numerous versions, this
composition is the largest and was certainly based on the lost original by
Pieter Bruegel the Elder. This argument is supported by forged signatures attributed to Bruegel the Elder
previously found on other copies and dated to the 1550s.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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