Jan Dirven

Jan Dirven (baptized 8 April 1625 – before 5 December 1653) was a Flemish still life painter who was active in Antwerp. He painted fish still lifes and banquet still lifes which are stylistically linked to the style of the Antwerp painter Alexander Adriaenssen and The Hague school of still life painters such as Abraham van Beijeren and Isaac van Duynen.

Life Jan was born in Antwerp as the son of Adriaen Cornelis Dirven (originally from Princenhage, a village to the south-west of Breda) and Helena (or Selina) van Dael. Rombout Meesens is an obscure painter to whom no known works are attributed. Seven of the 9 paintings are painted on panel and represent fish lying on a table while the two other paintings are painted on canvas and fall in the class of pronkstillevens, i.e. sumptuous still lifes of fruit, game, birds, expensive drinking glasses and tableware, exotic shells and other exclusive object such as watches.

In the first class of still lifes, the fish are all fresh-water fish, depicted in some cases along oysters or crayfish and always with one or more tools to catch or transport fish such as rods, nets or wooden buckets. In two of these paintings, large fish are suspended from the ceiling by a cord. Typical for Dirven's fish still lifes is the inclusion in the scene of the leaves, and, in one instance, a flower, of a very particular rare aquatic plant ‒ the European frogbit (hydrocharis morsus-ranae). One of his paintings include a cat with near the dead fish, which shows the influence of the Antwerp still life painter Alexander Adriaenssen who painted many paintings of cats with fish. Dirven aimed for a highly realistic representation of the fish and other objects included in his works. He may also have intended to send some hidden messages through his works. The painting with the cat looking greedily at the dead fish may illustrate a proverb very popular in Antwerp between 1610 and 1660 which goes as follows: "De kat wil wel visch eten, maer geen poot nat maken" (The cat wants to eat fish without wetting its paws). It denounces those who profiteer from others as cats that help themselves to fish not caught by themselves. Those profiteers included the local Catholic clergy sometimes referred to at the time as 'kloosterkatten' ('monastery cats').

In his 'pronkstillevens' Dirven also shows his knowledge of the work of Adriaenssen. These works, illustrating luxury products in bourgeois interiors, were likely produced to cater to the taste of the affluent bourgeoisie of Antwerp.

His paintings are regarded as being close to the monochrome style of Pieter de Putter and Isaac van Duynen, representatives of "The Hague School" of still life painters.