Birds in a Park

This reverse glass painting depicts a park landscape with a fountain consisting of two basins of water arranged one above the other. The water springs from the nostrils of a dolphin. Surrounding the fountain are various animals: a turkey, a peacock, a pair of doves and two rabbits. Four ducks are swimming in the lower pool. In the background we see various types of trees and a stone wall. A richly designed, gilded frame with an ornamental pediment lends the work its magnificent character.
The model for the work is an oil painting of the same name by the Flemish painter David de Coninck or David de Koninck, also known as Rammelaer (Antwerp, ca. 1644 - after 1701, probably Brussels). The reverse glass painting was purchased on the art market in 2016 as a work attributed to Anna Maria Franziska Pfyffer von Altishofen von Sonnenberg (1688-1757). During its restoration, a monogram and date were discovered that were previously hidden by the frame. Thanks to these elements, the work can now be attributed to Maria Anna Pfyffer von Altishofen (1731-?), daughter of Anna Maria Franziska Pfyffer von Altishofen von Sonnenberg. The artist, who came from Sursee (LU), must have learned the art of reverse glass painting from her mother. Mother and daughter were among to the women of the patrician class of Lucerne, who were influenced by the painting style of Anna Maria Barbara Abesch. Her reverse glass paintings have been little researched and were unknown to the public for a long time, because they remained in the family’s possession. It is known that one of the daughters of Maria Anna Pfyffer von Altishofen also mastered this technique.