Dark Academia
Still Life with Books, a Globe and Musical Instruments
Jan Vermeulen
A masterful 17th-century Dutch still life depicting scholarly and musical objects in a rich, atmospheric setting.
Still Life with Books and Musical Instruments
Jan Vermeulen
1650 · Oil Paint, Panel
A masterful Dutch Golden Age still life capturing the quiet intellectual beauty of books and music through dramatic chiaroscuro.
$129
For the selected configuration
From $129
6 frame sizes
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Made to order in ~2 business days · Free U.S. standard shipping (typically 5–8 business days after dispatch)
Where it works
A substantial, grounding work in a warmer tonal register — holds a formal wall with confidence.
- Often works in
- Library · Study · Office
- Placement
- Reads best as a confident vertical anchor
- Walls
- Best where a lighter wall gives it room to show
- Color notes
- Charcoal black, Deep burgundy, Soft yellow
About the piece
Painted around 1650 by Jan Vermeulen, this oil on panel still life is a quintessential example of the Dutch Golden Age. The composition uses dramatic light to illuminate an open volume, a recorder, and a lute, which emerge from an atmospheric, dark background. It is a sophisticated work that celebrates the intersection of art, music, and scholarship.
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