KESSEL, Jan van, I
(b. 1626, Antwerpen, d. 1679, Antwerpen)

Insects

1650s
Oil on copper, 12 x 15 cm
Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

Jan van Kessel's intimate cabinet paintings, which combine a minute observation of nature with a wonderfully decorative design, have always been the most prized of his works. Perfectly exemplifying the spirit of the age of enquiry from which they stem, and reflecting the recent invention of magnification that allowed the miniature to be examined and admired in detail, they are all inventive, and wonderfully attractive.