Frans Snyders was a pupil of Pieter Bruegel the Younger, who settled in Antwerp on his return from an Italian journey that lasted from 1608 to 1609, but in truth his style is so resolutely northern that it is hard to see what effect it had upon his art. Snyders was one of the great specialists in the representation of animals and of still life, and often worked in this capacity in collaboration with his only marginally older contemporary Rubens, but also on his own.
The vast majority of Snyders’s works, regardless of whether they are team efforts or independent productions, are notable for their superabundance of detail. That is what makes this enchanting ‘Lioness’ such a surprising departure within his oeuvre. The fact that it is monumental in scale is not particular unwonted for Snyders, but its long, low format is extremely unusual, and begs the question whether it was created not just with a particular patron, but also with a very specific location, in mind. The way in which the honeyed tones of the idling open-mouthed lioness almost seem to blend into the monochrome background is also extremely striking. Whatever the reasons behind all these features, the resulting work is not only on a higher qualitative plane than most of his pictures, but even more importantly looks forward to the easy naturalism of the ‘animaliers’ of the nineteenth century with uncannily timelessness.
- Material/technique
- oil on canvas
- Measurements
- 113 × 200 cm
- Acquisition
- acquired in 2004 by Prince Hans-Adam II von und zu Liechtenstein
- Artists/makers/authors
- Frans Snyders
- Inventory number
- GE 2135
- Provenance
- 22.12.1809 acquired in Paris by Amman de Schwamberg, The Hague; before 1823 George Watson Taylor, Cavendish Square, London; 13.6.1823 Christie's, London, lot 55 (catalogued as Rubens); 1823 Welbore Ellis Agar, 2nd Earl of Normanton; The Earl of Normanton, by inheritance in Somerley, Ringwood, Hampshire; Galerie Sanct Lucas, Vienna, acquired in 2004 by Prince Hans-Adam II von und zu Liechtenstein from the Galerie Sanct Lucas, Vienna.
- Iconography
- Lion
G.F. Waagen, Galleries and Cabinets of Art in Great Britain, Bd. IV, Bd. Bd. IV, London 1857, S. 373 (als Rubens)
M. Rooses, L'Oeuvre de P.P. Rubens, Bd. 4, Antwerpen 1890, S. 352, Kat. 1166
E. Dillon, Rubens 1909, S. 235
H. Schneider, Die Ausstellung flämischer und belgischer Kunst in London, in: Zeitschrift für bildende Kunst, Bd. LXI 1927, S. 43
F. Grossmann, Flemish Paintings at Bruges, in: The Burlington Magazine XCIX, Nr. 646 1957, S. 6 (als Snyders)
C. Norris, Letters: Flemish Paintings at Bruges, in: The Burlington Magazine XCIV, Nr. 646 1957, S. 125-127
H. Gerson u. E.H. Ter Kuile, Art and Architecture in Belgium 1600 to 1800, Harmondsworth 1960, S. 160
Hella Robels, Frans Snyders. Stilleben- und Tiermaler, 1579-1657, München 1989, S. 469, Kat. A 227
Johann Kräftner, Andrea Stockhammer, Liechtenstein Museum Wien. Le Collezioni, München 2004, S. 421, Abb. S. 392, Kat. X.23
Johann Kräftner, Andrea Stockhammer, Liechtenstein Museum Vienna. The Collections, Johann Kräftner (Hg.), München–Berlin–London–New York 2004, S. 421, Abb. S. 392, Kat. X.23
Johann Kräftner, Andrea Stockhammer, Liechtenstein Museum Wien. Die Sammlungen, Johann Kräftner (Hg.), München–Berlin–London–New York 2004, S. 421, Abb. S. 392, Kat. X.23
Ausst.-Kat. Der Fürst als Sammler. Neuerwerbungen unter Hans-Adam II. von und zu Liechtenstein, Johann Kräftner (Hg.), Liechtenstein Museum, Wien 12.2.2010–24.8.2010, erschienen Wien 2010, Abb. S. 210
Johann Kräftner, Die Schätze der Liechtenstein. Paläste, Gemälde, Skulpturen, Wien 2013, Abb. S. 296
Johann Kräftner, The Treasures of the Liechtensteins. Palaces, Paintings, Sculptures, Vienna 2013
Ausst.-Kat. Rubens, Van Dyck and the Flemish School of Painting. Masterpieces from the Collections of the Prince of Liechtenstein (Book Series for the National Museum of China International Exchange), Lu Zhangshen (Hg.), National Museum of China, Beijing 5.11.2013–15.2.2014, erschienen Beijing 2013, S. 208, 212, Abb. 212, Kat. 92
Ausst.-Kat. Rubens, Van Dyck and the Flemish School of Painting. Masterpieces from the Collections of the Prince of Liechtenstein, Shi Dawei (Hg.), China Art Museum, Shanghai 12.3.2014–2.6.2014, erschienen Shanghai 2014, S. 299, S. 305, Kat.-Nr. 92
Ausst.-Kat. Rubens, Van Dyck, Jordaens... Meisterwerke der Flämischen Malerei aus den Sammlungen des Fürsten von und zu Liechtenstein, Staatliches Museum für Bildende Künste A. S. Puschkin, Moskau 19.6.2014–19.10.2014, erschienen Wien–Moskau 2014, S. 290-293, Abb. 291, Kat. 50
Ausst.-Kat. Les Collections du Prince de Liechtenstein. Cranach, Raphael, Rubens, Van Dyck, Rembrandt, Vernet, Hubert Robert, Vigée-Lebrun, Fonds Mercator (Hg.), Caumont Centre d’Art, Aix-en-Provence 7.11.2015–20.3.2016, erschienen Brüssel 2015, S. 96–97, Kat.-Nr. 17
Ausst.-Kat. Liechtenstein. Die Fürstlichen Sammlungen, Regula Berger, Matthias Frehner und Rainer Lawicki (Hg.), Kunstmuseum, Bern 12.11.2016–19.3.2017, erschienen München 2016, S. 260–261, Kat.-Nr. 147
Ausst.-Kat. Von Rubens bis Makart. Die Fürstlichen Sammlungen Liechtenstein, Klaus Albrecht Schröder (Hg.), Albertina, Wien 16.2.2019–10.6.2019, erschienen Köln 2019, S. 184–187, Kat.-Nr. 47
Ausst.-Kat. From Rubens to Makart. LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Klaus Albrecht Schröder (Hg.), Albertina, Wien 16.2.2019–10.6.2019, erschienen Köln 2019, S. 184–187, Kat.-Nr. 47
Ausst.-Kat. Rubens, Van Dyck and the Splendour of Flemish Painting, Júlia Tátrai, Ágota Varga (Hg.), Szépmúvészeti Múzeum, Budapest 30.10.2019–16.2.2020, erschienen Budapest 2019, S. 292–293, Kat.-Nr. 78
Lothar Schirmer (Hg.), Gemalte Tiere. 61 Meisterwerke aus sieben Jahrhunderten. Bild für Bild mit literarischen Texten von 52 zeitgenössischen Autoren von Giorgio Agamben bis Armin Zweite, München 2021, S. 44, Tafel 8
