M.Starshinov — «Gallery of artists» (F.Snyders — A Pantry)

Frans Snyders or Snijders was a Flemish painter of animals and still life. Snyders was born and died at Antwerp. He is recorded as a student of Pieter Brueghel the Younger in 1593, and subsequently received instruction from Hendrick van Balen, the first master of Van Dyck. He was a friend of Van Dyck who painted Snyders and his wife more than once. Snyders initially devoted himself to painting flowers, fruit and subjects of still life, but later turned to painting animals, and executed with the greatest skill and spirit hunting pieces and combats of wild animals. He was one of the earliest specialist animaliers. The whole work is played with the piano pedal depressed. This technique means a kind of «frozen frame». However, I tried in music to describe the action that takes place in this work. Also, in this work there is a theme of the cat, which is present in many works of Snyders. I suppose that a cat is an observer of everything that the artist paints, for what is happening in the picture. In music, you can hear his fear, how he hides and runs away from dogs. This work is the first part of the future cycle «Gallery of artists»!