Jan Siberechts, 1627–ca. 1703, Flemish, active in Britain (from 1672)
Title:
Wollaton Hall and Park, Nottinghamshire
Date:
1697
Materials & Techniques:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
75 1/2 × 54 1/2 inches (191.8 × 138.4 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1973.1.52
Gallery Label:
Idyllic views of country estates such as this one were commissioned by the ruling classes to show off their possessions and their taste. Siberechts presents a bird’s-eye view of Wollaton Hall and Park, capturing its vast acreage while nodding to the sources of the Willoughby family’s wealth: landownership, agriculture, and mining. Built in the 1580s, the grand Elizabethan house is surrounded by opulent gardens, while the distant hills hold the coal on which the family built its fortune. In the foreground, richly dressed figures arrive by carriage, while others promenade and play lawn bowls. To the left, household staff work in vegetable gardens, a subtle indication of the hard labor involved in maintaining both the estate and the comfortable lives of its owners. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2025
