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1 of 253523 objects
Pigeons Signed and dated 1841
Oil on panel | 33.75 x 27.4 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external) | RCIN 400812
Henri Voordecker (1779-1861)
Pigeons Signed and dated 1841
Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2022. Photographer:Mike Davidson
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Henri Voordecker (1779-1861) studied with Jean-Baptiste le Roy. He specialized in genre scenes, landscapes and romantic depictions of animals, particularly pigeons. During his lifetime he won acclaim in Britain. His painting The Hunter's Return was bought by the Rijksmuseum, and his Dovecote can be seen in the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels.
This is one of two pigeon-loft scenes in the collection (RCIN 400812 & 403872); though of the same date, they do not appear to be a pair. This one hung in the Duchess of Kent’s Dressing Room at Osborne, circa 1876, and was one of Queen Victoria’s earliest presents to the Prince Consort of paintings by foreign contemporary artists. The settings in both Voordeckers in the collection are inspired by the arched views of shops by Dutch 17th century artists, like Gerrit Dou (see RCIN 405542), except in the case of RCIN 403872 we are outside the pigeon loft looking in (as one might expect) and in this case we are in the loft looking out (in a pigeon's-eye view of the world).
Eight pigeons of assorted colours perch on a wooden ledge by the arched aperture of a pigeon loft; framed by an opening surrounded by ivy, the birds are thrown into relief by the cloudy, pale blue sky behind. One pigeon is depicted in flight, seemingly returning to the loft. The opening frames a woodland landscape in which a Baroque castle, possibly the royal residence at Laeken in Belgium, is situated. An avenue with a neoclassical temple is discernible in the distance.Provenance
Given by Queen Victoria to Prince Albert on his birthday, 26th August 1841; recorded hanging in the Prince Consort's Writing Room (Room no 210) at Windsor Castle in 1878
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Creator(s)
(nationality)Acquirer(s)
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Medium and techniques
Oil on panel
Measurements
33.75 x 27.4 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external)
55.2 x 49.7 x 4.6 cm (frame, external)
Category
Object type(s)