RIJCK, Pieter Cornelisz van
(b. 1568 Delft, d. 1628 Haarlem)
Dutch painter. He was the pupil of Jacob Willemsz. I Delff and Huybrecht Jacobsz. He spent 15 years in Italy, then lived in Haarlem from 1604. He specialized in large kitchen interiors.
Kitchen Scene with the Supper at Emmaus
This drawing represents the sumptuous kitchen of a wealthy household. In the right background the artist depicts the scene Supper at Emmaus. Christ is shown with his hand raised in blessing, just before the moment of recognition.
The drawing was in the collection of Catherine the Great.
The Kitchen Maid
The increasing interest in everyday reality was clearly expressed in the second half of the 16th century in the genre of market and kitchen scenes. Although images like this are not just straightforwardly realistic representations, their artistic significance lies in the lively and coherent manner in which the artist managed to represent a profusion of objects and foods. The genre was also popular in the 17th century and was practised in both the Northern and Southern Netherlands. An interesting example, illustrating a common pictorial type, is The Kitchen Maid, attributed to Pieter Cornelisz van Rijck (I568-I628). It shows a central female figure in a larder surrounded by still-life elements. She poses with her hand on a cabbage - a common erotic allusion in paintings of this kind.