Lot 1094 Dα

Hendrik van Streek was the son of the Amsterdam still life painter Juriaan van Streek, and received part of his training under him. His other teachers included the architectural painter Emanuel de Witte and the sculptor Willem van der Hoeven. However, his paintings display greatest affinity to those of his father, and are frequently mistaken for his.
Hendrik van Streek sparingly presents just a few, valuable objects in a dramatic portrait format, including a Wanli porcelain dish, the slightly slanted arrangement of which breaks away from the otherwise starkly vertical and horizontal angles of the composition. The forms of the short, stout rummer and the tall, slender wine flute can be discerned against the dark background through the artist's masterful placement of reflected light. Oranges, peaches, and a lemon are shown scattered across the stone console table, and their placement mirrors the diagonal arrangement of the bowl. The composition is completed by a vivid red tablecloth with gilt trimming, beneath which a knife is concealed, its handle teetering precariously over the table's edge. This motif is a popular trope of Dutch still life painting, and represents the uncertain and transitory nature of earthly life.

We would like to thank Fred Meijer (RKD, The Hague) for confirming the authenticity of this work.