Still-life painter Pieter Claesz (1596/97–1660) probably came from Berchem, near Antwerp. He moved to Haarlem at an early date, where he married in 1617 and remained for the rest of his life. Pieter Claesz's son Nicolaes Berchem also became a painter. In his early work, Pieter Claesz employed vivid colours. Later, he adopted a more subdued palette with a more monotone range. His compositions acquired increasing elegance, broadness and nonchalance as the years passed. Nevertheless, the objects in his still lifes rarely overlap. For Pieter Claesz, the principal aim was to render the materials and catch the reflected light as accurately as possible. This was his speciality.
