Nicolaes Gillis
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Bread on the 17th century table

I love going back to my books on 17th C paintings time and time again: just looking at pictures provides such inspiration. I have a few books on paintings of food: while they show beautiful paintings they also provide great insight into the…
Floris van Dijck 1620
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Strange things in old Dutch paintings

Osias Beert. Still life of porcelain vessels containing sweets, pewter plates bearing sweets and chestnuts, three pieces of glassware and a bread roll on a table draped with a mauve cloth. 1600-1619, private collection.   In…
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European tricks to help you through a pandemic, 14th century style

  Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1562), The Triumph of Death. Museo Nacional del Prado   Pandemic tips. Now we have experienced and are hopefully recovering from this truly awful COVID-19 pandemic, it is interesting to look back…
skaters
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Skating in Holland

     Winter Landscape with Ice Skaters (circa 1608) Hendrick Avercamp Rijksmuseum Amsterdam   Doe je schaatsen aan! (Put your skates on!) Skating in Holland - Hendrick Avercamp was one of many to paint the Dutch winter and…