Artwork

Ansichten aus den vier Weltteilen mit Szenen von Tieren: Madrid

Ansichten aus den vier Weltteilen mit Szenen von Tieren: Madrid is an unspecified painting by Ferdinand van Kessel the Elder. It dates from 1682 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

About this work

Overview

Created circa 1682, this Flemish Baroque canvas by Ferdinand van Kessel the Elder portrays a tranquil landscape populated by a diverse assembly of animals. The composition balances foreground figures with a distant urban setting, integrating natural and built environments in a single, orderly scene.

Subject & Meaning

At the center, a peacock displays its plumage while a majestic, antlered deer watches nearby. Scattered among them are a magpie, a pheasant and other birds, each rendered in a calm pose that suggests a harmonious coexistence of wildlife within the depicted terrain.

Technique & Style

Van Kessel employs meticulous brushwork to delineate fur, feathers and foliage, favoring a restrained palette of earthy hues. The precise rendering of each creature and plant reflects the artist’s attention to naturalistic detail, characteristic of late 17th‑century Flemish genre painting.

History & Provenance

The painting entered the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, where it remains part of the institution’s Baroque holdings. Its acquisition date is not recorded, but it has been catalogued as a representative work of van Kessel’s animal and landscape oeuvre.

Context

During the late 1600s, Flemish artists often combined exotic fauna with idealized landscapes, catering to aristocratic tastes for decorative yet instructive scenes. Van Kessel’s inclusion of a distant city and bridge links the natural world to contemporary urban life, echoing broader Baroque interests in order and spectacle.