Birds on a Balustrade  1680

Melchior d’Hondecoeter is the best-known bird painter of the 17th century. He brought the genre to great heights. He portrayed birds from all over the world with a great sensitivity for detail, colour, and animation: chicken, hoopoe or parrot, he observed them all equally closely. This oil sketch of chicks affords unique insight into D’Hondecoeter’s working practice. He us...