MARTIN VAN CLEVE (ANTWERP 1527-1581) LA PRESENTATION... Lot 23

MARTIN VAN CLEVE (ANTWERP 1527-1581) LA PRESENTATION DES CADEAUX A LA MARIEE Oak panel, one plank, not parqueted, in a 17th century gilt and carved walnut frame, a 19th century black ink number : 947 and an inscription that is difficult to read Presentation of gifts to the bride, oak panel, one plank, not cradled, in a 17th century gilt and carved walnut frame, a 19th century black ink number and an inscription that is difficult to read 27 x 38 cm - 10,6 x 15 in. Martin van Cleve, who was received as a master in the Antwerp guild in 1551, was an exact contemporary of Peter Brueghel the Elder, who had a major influence on him. The wedding feast and the presentation of gifts are important themes in the work of Martin van Cleve. Our painting can be compared to another version (panel, 26.5 x 37.4 cm) in the Eesti Kunstimuseum in Tallinn, which is reproduced in the book by Klaus Ertz (see K. Ertz, Marten van Cleve, Lingen, 2014, no. 159). This theme of fair scenes is recurrent in his work; it is a pretext for the most diverse popular revelry and reflects a bourgeois conscience that wanted to preserve itself from the weaknesses of human nature.