Artwork
Trompe l'oeil with Violin, Music Book and Recorder
Trompe l'oeil with Violin, Music Book and Recorder is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Cornelis Norbertus Gijsbrechts. It dates from 1672 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Overview
Cornelis Norbertus Gijsbrechts, a Flemish painter active in the latter half of the 17th century, produced this oil on canvas in 1672 while serving as court painter to the Danish monarchy. The work is a trompe‑l’œil still life that presents a violin, a recorder, a music manuscript and a pair of feathers as if they were pinned to a wooden wall, creating a convincing illusion of three‑dimensional objects.
Subject & Meaning
The composition gathers musical paraphernalia—a light‑brown violin with visible strings, a wooden recorder with its finger holes, and a sheet of music bearing black notation—alongside contrasting black and white feathers. By arranging these items on a flat surface, Gijsbrechts invites the viewer to question the boundary between painted representation and real objects, a common theme in illusionistic art.
Technique & Style
Executed in meticulous oil paint, the piece demonstrates the artist’s skill in rendering texture and light. Fine brushwork captures the grain of the violin’s wood, the translucency of the feather barbs, and the crispness of the manuscript’s paper, while subtle shading gives each element a sense of depth that enhances the trompe‑l’œil effect.
History & Provenance
Created during Gijsbrechts’s tenure at the Danish court, the painting later entered the collection of Denmark’s national gallery, the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it remains on display. Its provenance reflects the artist’s itinerant career across the Spanish Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Sweden.
Context
The work belongs to the Dutch Golden Age, a period when still‑life painting flourished alongside a booming economy and expanding trade networks. Trompe‑l’œil pieces such as this one catered to a sophisticated clientele interested in visual tricks and the display of learned, musical culture.
Artist & collection
Artist
Cornelis Norbertus Gijsbrechts
Cornelis Norbertus Gijsbrechts (1625/1629 – after 1675), was a Flemish painter who was active in the Spanish Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Sweden in the second half of the seventeenth century.
