Attributed to Jeremias van WINGHE (Brussels, 1578 - Frankfurt, 1645 ) Allegories of the Four Elements: Allegory of Fire or Kitchen Scene, Allegory of Air or Poultry Market, Allegory of Earth or the fruit and vegetable market, Allegory of water or the fish market Suite of four oil paintings In carved and gilded wooden frames, 17th century work Allegories of the Four elements, set of four canvas, attr. to J. van Winghe 44.88 x 58.66 in. 114.5 x 149 cm Provenance: Château de Bagnols since the 17th century ; Anonymous sale; Paris, Hôtel Drouot, Me Aguttes, 6 December 2013, no. 20 ; Acquired at this sale by the current owners Three market scenes and a kitchen interior belong to this series representing the four elements: the poultry stall symbolises air, the fish stall water, the fruit and vegetable stall earth and the kitchen scene fire. These dynamic works featuring mischievous-looking characters carry a barely concealed erotic connotation: the chicken brandished on the poultry market is an erotic motif commonly depicted in the 16th and 17th centuries, since it refers to the verb "birding", which means "to make love". The source of these four compositions is undoubtedly the Antwerp painter Joachim Beuckelaer (1533-1574), who produced a monumental series on the theme of the four elements, now in the National Gallery in London1. Several motifs are borrowed from Beuckelaer, such as the central female figure depicted on the canvas depicting the kitchen, which seems to have been inspired by the Fish Market in the Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp2. The outstretched arm of the young woman holding a basket also seems to be a motif drawn from Beuckelaer's vocabulary. Other versions of our compositions are known to us: the scenes of the poultry market and the kitchen appeared as a pair in the J. Herbrand collection in Paris in 1941 and then at Artur Ramon in Barcelona in 1990. Recently, a repeat of the Vegetable Market composition was presented at Christie's3. Finally, a series of drawings in the Boijmans van Beuningen Museum in Rotterdam reproduce our compositions4. Three of these drawings bear traces of an underlying black chalk drawing. It is therefore possible that these drawings were intended as models for the production of engravings, even if the prints have not yet been found. Although this iconography was a great success, the original model has yet to be identified. At the beginning of the 17th century, artists such as Jeremias van Winghe took up the iconography inherited from Joachim Beuckelaer and Pieter Aertsen, producing market scenes with picturesque details5. The importance of our ensemble lies in its completeness: all the elements are represented before our eyes, reflecting the riches of the world. 1. Inventory numbers: NG6585 to NG6588. 2. inventory no.: 814, signed '1574/joachi/beu'. 3. Anonymous sale; Paris, Christie's, 14 June 2024, no. 120, formerly in the collection of Madame de la Boutresse, Château de Grosmenil, Saint-Romain-de-Colbosc. 4. Inventory no.: N 169, N 166, N 168, N 167. 5. See for example: Frankfurt, Historisches Museum, inv. no. B 1792. Attributed to Jeremias van WINGHE (Brussels, 1578 - Frankfurt, 1645 ) 114.5 x 149 cm