Dance of putti - 16th century Flemish painting, circle of of Otto Van Veen

Our painting depicts 14 dancing putti in a circle holding hands. The work is thought to have been created in the entourage of Otto Van Veen, Mannerist painter and one of the best interpreters of Flemish painting. The artist was born in Leyde around 1556, in the Netherlands, but for political and religious reasons, he moved to Antwerp where he received several commissions and founded a painting studio where he also had the famous painter Rubens as a pupil. Under the influence of his master, Dominique Lampson, Otto Van Veen would latinise his name ( Otto Venius) and inherit from him the archaic and Nordic influences that were largely present in his painting. As mentioned, it must be emphasised that, during a study stay in Rome, Otto Van Veen will be so fascinated by the Mannerist art, befriending painters of the calibre of Federico Zuccaro.
The theme of dancing putti was treated at length. After not being represented during the Middle Ages, Putti were reintroduced into painting in the 15th century. In Italy, specifically in Florence, it was thanks to Donatello that the classic figure of putto was restored and, together with Raphael, they were the painters who made the most use of this image. During the Renaissance period, puttos mostly had a decorative function, not participating in the events depicted on canvas. It’s from the beginning of the XVI century that the figure of the putti was also introduced in Germany and the Netherlands, and it’s here that we must place the realisation of our painting.
In our painting, the putti are the protagonists of the scene, avoiding the mere decorative function that usually pertained to them. The rhythm of the dance is slow, gentle, sinuous, some holding hands, other abandoning themselves to the rhythm and twirling through the wood. Everything seems to suggest calmness and joie de vivre that captures the viewer’s soul. The bodies of the putti are caressed by the sun’s rays that illuminate and make perceptible the softness and whiteness of their small bodies.
Compared to the more widely work attributed to Otto Van Veen, the scenography changes here. The putti are no longer placed in a curtain, as if they were merrily performing before a mysterious audience, but are set against a natural backdrop. According to historiographers, there are several versions of the dancing putti attributed to both Italian and Flemish artists. Two famous versions can be found in the Galleria Sabauda in Turin.


Dimensions with the frame  ( length= 59,6 cm;  width= 95 cm ; depth=2,3 cm) ; Black frame, late 19th
Dimensions without the frame ( lenght =38,5 cm ; width=74 cm)