Veduta

The painting frames an illusionistic window opening onto ruined classical colonnades, statues and a distant sea under a blue sky, tied back with broad red-and-white striped curtains. On the marble ledge perches a scarlet macaw beside a basket of grapes, pears and plums, a pewter jug, a wine glass, a conch shell and an unlit candle, with a small mask hanging from the curtain.

Bright reds, blues and yellows of the parrot's plumage anchor the composition against the pale stone of the ruins and the soft blue of sky and sea. Paint is applied with crisp, detailed realism, especially in the glass, stone and feathers, under even, clear light. The combination of ruins and still life produces a decorative, theatrical effect.