Landscape with Three Figures and Birds

In this finely rendered ink drawing, Albert Flamen captures the minutiae of a plant-filled landscape; his curling pen- and brushstrokes imbue blades of grass, bunches of leaves, and vines with a sense of movement. In the background, Flamen’s use of thin lines and his sparing application of wash effectively convey atmospheric perspective, as the mountains seem to blend into the pale gray sky. Elsewhere, the artist varied his application of wash to create a striking interplay of light and shadow; the dress of the figure in the right foreground, for instance, comprises alternating passages of dark wash and untouched paper. Flamen, who lived in Paris during his recorded life (although he may have been of Flemish descent), was known for his landscape prints of the countryside surrounding that city, taken from sketches and drawings done en plein air.

While the subject of this drawing is unknown, the archaizing costume of the woman holding a basket and the unusual shape of the dovecote in the midground (which features two protruding beams in the form of a cross) suggest that it is an allegory of some sort. Flamen was a prolific illustrator of emblem books and was therefore used to depicting symbolically rich subjects. [1] One such book of emblems, Augustin Chesneau’s Orpheus Eucharisticus (1970.607), foregrounded depictions of animals, much like this drawing. Here, Flamen flaunts his skill in portraying birds, which he often studied from life (see 2008.178.14a). Compositionally, this drawing recalls the artist’s numerous zoological prints showing fish or birds occupying the immediate foreground of a landscape (see 2011.467.12 and 2011.467.8 from Flamen’s Livre d’Oyseaux).

Isabella Gold, 3/30/2023

[1] For more information on emblems in Flamen’s oeuvre, see Graham, David. "A Context for Albert Flamen's Devises et Emblesmes d'Amour moralisez." Emblematica 13, (01/01/2003): 173-211.