Setting Off on a Hunt by Jan Peter Verdussen

Jan Peeter Verdussen trained in Antwerp and painted mainly landscapes and battle scenes, drawing inspiration at times from Snayers and van der Meulen, and at other times from Wouwerman, who helped to establish the conventions of this genre, which was highly sought-after in^{the 17th} and^18th centuries. Across Europe, princely collections of old master paintings, such as those in Dresden, the Prado and St Petersburg, still bear witness to this widespread admiration for Wouwerman’s art.

The influence of the painter Philips Wouwerman, a prolific artist of the Dutch Golden Age, is evident here, whether in the depiction of the horse from behind (Toulouse, Bemberg Foundation) or in the way the scene is brought to life through subtle touches of light, drawing the eye in multiple directions. Similarly, picturesque, rural scenes unrelated to the hunt appear in the background, lending the hunt a broader social dimension than that of an aristocratic group performing a ritual that reinforces their exclusivity. A cart drawn by two oxen, walkers commenting on the scene from a bridge, and a building signifying the presence of civilisation lend the whole a peaceful and convivial atmosphere.

 The painting, now housed at Bouges Castle, with its composition punctuated by the varied postures of the horses and their riders, is, however, less naturalistic than the work of other painters from the Northern School. The horses’ ambling gait and necks are stylised, their eyes enlarged, whilst the riders’ faces are rendered in far less detail than in Wouwerman’s work, and are sometimes even partially obscured.

Jan Peeter Verdussen, as in the hunting scene that forms its counterpart at Bouges Castle, does not fail to highlight the unsettling aspect of the hunting ritual, by depicting in the foreground four dogs already on the prowl for game, clearly eager to give chase.  Since the early Middle Ages, the Christian religion has expressed strong reservations regarding hunting and has forbidden the practice to the clergy. Yet the horseman on a white horse bears the insignia of the Orders of the Holy Spirit and the Golden Fleece, whilst pointing towards other horsemen. These insignia, which highlight the importance of defending the Christian faith and chivalry, raise questions about the expectations of those taking part in this hunt, who are involved in scenes as bloody as they are savage.