Artwork
Totes Geflügel
Totes Geflügel is an unspecified painting by the Rococo painting artist Johann Georg Waxschlunger. It dates from 1713 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1713 by Johann Georg Waxschlunger, this oil painting—titled *Totes Geflügel*—is part of the Alte Pinakothek collection. The work presents a tableau of deceased game, arranged on a dark, undefined ground. Its composition emphasizes quietude, with muted hues that reinforce a subdued, contemplative atmosphere.
Subject & Meaning
The central element is a sizable bird, its plumage a mix of white and brown, laid on its back. To the left lies a dark‑toned animal, likely a rabbit or hare, while the right side contains smaller birds and a fish. The assortment of dead creatures suggests a still‑life tradition that reflects on mortality and the transience of nature’s bounty.
Technique & Style
Waxschlunger employs a restrained palette of deep browns, grays, and subdued earth tones, allowing the forms of the animals to emerge from a shadowy backdrop. The brushwork is delicate, rendering feather and fur textures with subtle gradations, while the background remains loosely suggested, enhancing the focus on the lifeless subjects.
History & Provenance
The painting entered the Alte Pinakothek’s holdings, where it remains on display. Its attribution to Waxschlunger, a relatively obscure early‑18th‑century German painter, is supported by the date inscribed on the work and stylistic parallels with his other known pieces.
Artist & collection
Artist
This 1713 painter made three oil-on-canvas scenes of Vienna’s Danube riverfront, all dated that year.
