19th-Century Dutch School, Still Life With Fruit, Oysters & Lobster

19th-Century Dutch School, Still Life With Fruit, Oysters & LobsterThis impressive 19th century still life depicts a sumptuous bounty of fruit, oysters, flowers and porcelain. Its an abundant display a celebration of nature. This iconic style of still life was made popular by the Dutch old masters in the 17th century when many of the goods depicted were considered highly exotic and precious. Middle class buyers commissioned thousands of works to declare their newly acquired wealth and beautify their homes. One such

Could it be a keepsake from a relative killed during the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871)

A few light scuffs here and there

400 achieved for ‘A Mother and Child’ at an auction in 1994

which wanders off towards the warmth of the cottages

Condition: Areas of overpainting

They’re an array of tints and tones

This enchanting mid-19th-century landscape by British artist Joseph Newington Carter (1835-1871) depicts a coastal scene by St Michael’s Mount in Cornwall

A beautiful early Victorian English school portrait of a lady holding a child

A voile is diffusing the glare

has laboured over the smallest details - even the shiny cherries atop the sticky iced buns

Living free and basing all decisions upon emotional response without restraint

This particular piece began life as a drawing and many of the details in the background are either outlines or gently coloured with a wash