Cornelis Mahu

Cornelis Mahu (1613 – 16 November 1689) was a Flemish painter of still lifes, genre paintings and seascapes who showed a very high level of craftsmanship in his compositions.

This message is conveyed through the usual symbols of the genre: the cut orange, which evokes the passing of life that is bitter in essence, and meaningless if not combined with a higher spiritual reality, and the burning candle, which inexorably measures time and the limits of our material and sensual aspirations.

Guardroom scenes often included mercenaries and prostitutes dividing booty, harassing captives or indulging in other forms of reprehensible activities.

[6] Mahu painted a Guardroom with the Release of St. Peter (Sold at Agraa Art on 17 October 2004), which is freely inspired by two compositions of David Teniers the Younger in the Wallace Collection and the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen in Dresden.

[3] Cornelis Mahu's work depicts soldiers and officers on three different planes engaging in various activities such as gambling, smoking and talking.

[7] It is possible that in line with the moralizing intent of the genre, the armour is a reference to the vanitas motif of the transience of power and fame.

[3] Although better known for his still lifes and genre scenes, Mahu produced a number of seascapes that show his originality.