In cooperation with the Kaiserschild Foundation, the Kunsthistorisches Museum is showing a small special presentation on the Dutch Baroque painter Pieter Claesz (1597/98-1660), focusing for the first time on this important representative of 17th century still life painting.

The focus is on the paintings Still Life with Fruit Pie, Silver Tazza, Gilded Lidded Goblet and "Roman" (Wine Glass) (1637) from the Kunst Museum Winterthur, Still Life with Glass Goblet (1642) from the Alte Galerie of the Universalmuseum Joanneum Graz - on permanent loan from the Kaiserschild Foundation - and Vanitas Still Life (1656) from the Kunsthistorisches Museum, which impressively represent Claesz's masterful use of light and his fine handling of materiality.
These three major works have been digitized in the highest quality and specially prepared for art education. A multimedia table and seven short films invite visitors to delve deeper into the art genre of still life, individual work details, cultural and historical aspects as well as the life and artistic work of the artist.

The many facets of still life in the work of Pieter Claesz
Pieter Claesz (around 1597/98-1660), born in Flanders, settled in Haarlem around 1620, a city on the rise economically. Thanks to influential brewers and wealthy Antwerp merchants who had fled the Spanish occupation, the city became one of the most important art centers in the Netherlands. Claesz further developed the tradition of Haarlem still life painting and is regarded as the founder of the new type of "laid tables". With a pictorial language reduced to the essentials - muted colors, few objects - he created small meal paintings ("ontbijtje" or "banketje"), which became his trademark. Claesz painted around 230 paintings over a period of around 40 years. He is justifiably famous for his subtle use of color and light and his skill in depicting different surfaces.

Pieter Claesz (1597/98-1660), Still life with fruit pie, silver tazza, gilded lidded goblet and "Römer" (wine glass), 1637, oil on wood, Kunst Museum Winterthur, Donation of the Jakob Briner Foundation, 2018 © Kunst Museum Winterthur

In Still Life with Fruit Pie, Silver Tazza, Gilded Lidded Goblet and Roman (1637), Pieter Claesz stages the wealth of the Netherlands in the so-called Golden Age. An opulently laid table with exquisite dishes and precious vessels reflects the prosperity of the aspiring bourgeoisie. The media table gives visitors an insight into the origins of the status symbols on display. In addition, the magnificent vessels depicted are contextualized with comparable objects from today's art chambers.
contextualized.
In Still Life with Glass Goblet (1642), Pieter Claesz depicts a simple Dutch snack typical of his time with herring, onions, bread and beer. His masterful use of illusion techniques and his handling of light and reflections in a monochrome color palette are particularly evident in this painting, which is discussed in more detail in individual chapters
at the media table.

Pieter Claesz (1597/98-1660), Still Life with Glass Goblet, 1642, oil on wood, Universalmuseum Joanneum, Alte Galerie Schloss Eggenberg, on loan from the Kaiserschild-Stiftung, © Photo: UMJ/N. Lackner

In Vanitas Still Life (1656), the artist addresses the transience of life. Visitors can explore the objects depicted in the painting, including a skull, a fallen glass ("Roman") and a clock, as special points of interest at the interactive media table and learn more about their symbolism.
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June 17, 2025 to March 15, 2026