Adriaen Pietersz. van de Venne

"The following condition report has been provided by Henry Gentle, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. The oak panel is in a good condition, there is some slight worm damage to the bottom edge , with minor losses. The paint layer is naturally thin and the horizontal wood grain has come to dominate with the passage of time. Reduction of this is apparent and quite substantial. The dark bituminous passages have shrunk with age allowing a filigree of fine pale cracking to manifest, these areas have also been reinforced, excessively so in places. Apart from the above the general condition is good with a substantial tonal improvement if the varnish were removed. Moulded gilt wood frame, good condition."
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This work is both stylistically and thematically related to another panel, showing Dancing Nymphs in a Landscape, in a private collection, signed and dated 1651. The very loose and almost draughtsman-like brushwork, typical of Van de Venne's later years, together with the poses of the dancing figures and the putti hovering in the sky, are among the many characteristics shared by these two works and, as suggested by Dr. Edwin Buijsen, the present work may therefore be dated to a similar period as Dancing Nymphs, that is the beginning of the 1650s.

We are grateful to Dr. Edwin Buijsen for endorsing the attribution to Van de Venne on the basis of photographs. This painting will be included in the forthcoming monograph on Van de Venne currently being prepared by Dr. Buijsen.

A note on the Provenance: A painting described as a Kinderdans ('Children's Dance') by Van de Venne is mentioned in the inventory of Adr. Trist in Delft from 1657 (see A. Bredius, Künstler-Inventare, vol. II, The Hague 1915-1922, p. 389). While this may be identifiable with the present work the description is too vague to be sure as Van de Venne repeated the same subject on several occasions.