Object Description
An Elegant Musical Party in an Interior’ attributed to Gillis van Tilborgh, oil on canvas depicting a Dutch genre scene with figures dressed in rich silk clothing, fine lace ruffs and fichu collars grouped round musicians playing a clavichord, a fiddle and a flute, some couples holding hands or sitting close together and a baby playing on the floor, with a plaque reading ‘Gerard Terburg 1608-1681’, the reverse with a chalk notation ‘Ld Hesketh’. Dutch, circa 1870.
Framed Height 53 ½ inches Width 64 inches
Canvas Height 39 ¼ inches Width 50 inches
Gillis van Tilborgh, taught by the most famous Flemish painter of the 17th century, David Teniers, became a member of the important Saint Luke Painters’ Guild in Brussels in 1654, when he set up his own successful studio. Specialising in group portraits and genre scenes, Van Tilborgh’s use of colour is lively, with reds and blues reminiscent of Teniers. His success brought him to England around 1670, taking commissions from English aristocracy.
Easton Neston, the seat of the Hesketh-Fermor family for nearly 500 years, was home to an unrivalled collection of works of art, dating from as far back as the Tudor period.