Artist: Jan Brueghel the Younger

Year: ca. 1650

Medium: Oil on panel

As the eldest son of the Flemish painter Jan Brueghel the Elder—who, alongside Rubens, was one of Antwerp’s most successful Flemish painters—Jan Brueghel the Younger was likely destined from the outset to carry on the family tradition and become a painter himself. He produced numerous highly successful paintings in his father’s style, including this depiction of Paradise. In a lush forest landscape, native and exotic animals crowd together, including a pair of lions, exotic parrots, monkeys, and turtles. Their peaceful coexistence indicates that this is a depiction of Paradise. Only upon closer inspection can one discern that Adam and Eve are also depicted in the background. Brueghel created several depictions of Paradise of this kind.

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