Peter van Kessel

Peter van Kessel or Peeter van Kessel[1] (Antwerp, c. 1635 – Ratzeburg, early October 1668) was a Flemish still life painter who worked in a number of sub-genres but is principally known for his flower pieces, game pieces, garland paintings and vanitas paintings.

From the documents relating to the complaint it appears that van Kessel was at the time just stopping over for about a month in Lübeck while he was on his way to Copenhagen to which he had been allegedly called by the Danish king.

Van Kessel was separately also accused of having made derogatory remarks about the members of the Council of Lübeck in retribution of which he was threatened with arrest.

Probably as a vanitas reminder (discussed below), the stems or petals of the hollyhock on the right and the nasturtium on the left are shown already drooping slightly.

Paintings in this genre typically show a flower or, less frequently, fruit garland around a devotional image or portrait.

The flowers in the painting resemble those of the Garland surrounding a stone cartouche with a chalice in the Staatsgalerie Bamberg, dated 1658.

[11] Stylistically his garland paintings are close to those created by Jan van Kessel the Elder who may have been a family member.

The motif of Vanitas or transience of life is inspired by the Christian belief that the world is solely a temporary place of fleeting pleasures and sorrows from which mankind can only escape through the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus.

For instance, in the Floral still life in a niche with a stag beetle discussed above the wilting flowers express the vanitas theme of impermanence and death.

This composition contains the typical symbols present in vanitas paintings: a skull with a laurel wreath (referencing the passing of glory), dice (referencing the vicissitudes of life), a wine glass, sheet music and a violin (refencing the fleetingness of physical and spiritual pleasures), wilting flowers and an hourglass (refencing decay and the passing of time).