Quince fruit with insects and a garden snail.
2026
Oil on poplar
17 x 30 cm (6.7 x 11.8″), to be framed
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Two of the insects in this painting are partly gilded with 23ct ‘shell’ gold and silver – particles of gold and silver encased in a container, traditionlly a shell during Renaissance times. The artist followed the technique of Joris Hoefnagel (1542-1601): his manuscript Animalia Rationalia et Insecta, which contains a collection of miniature studies of animals, is generally considered a milestone in the early study of animals during the Northern Renaissance. As one of the pioneers of scientific enquiry he laid the groundwork for the exploding interest in natural history the following century. As part of his technique to suggest iridescence and metallic surfaces, he applied shell gold and silver to insect wings.
