Rabbit with game

My name is Feely T. Heart, and I will be your guide today through one of our paintings: nn Today, we are looking at "Rabbit with Game," a captivating work painted in 1736 by the French artist Jean-Baptiste Oudry. Oudry was renowned for his incredibly lifelike depictions of animals, and this piece, currently housed in the Yamazaki Mazak Museum of Art, is a wonderful example of his skill. nn Notice how the artist uses a dramatic contrast between light and shadow, a technique known as chiaroscuro, to draw our attention to the rabbit. The rabbit itself is rendered with meticulous detail, from the texture of its fur to the glint in its eye. Oudry doesn't shy away from depicting the reality of the hunt; the rabbit is clearly lifeless, but there's a gentleness in the way it's positioned, a kind of respect for the animal. nn Beside the rabbit, we see a hunting bag, its leather worn and its contents – a powder flask – hinting at the activities that preceded this moment. The muted color palette of browns and creams adds to the sense of somber reflection. nn "Rabbit with Game" is not just a painting of a hunted animal; it's a meditation on life and death in the natural world, a theme that resonated deeply with audiences in Oudry's time and continues to hold relevance even today.