Pink and Bronze Tray with Classical Scene

Artisan: Natasha Beshenkovsky
Date: 2010
Inscriptions: signed and dated ‘Natasha 2010’ (on the reverse)
Dimensions: 38 x 52 x 3 mm. / 1 ½ x 2 x ⅛ inches (height x width x depth)
Intended Room: Breakfast Room
Inventory number: 2022.158
Category: Objets d’Art

Provenance: Purchased from Judy Taylor at Kensington Dolls House Festival, May 2022, where she was selling off stock from her old shop, Taylors Miniatures, in Goring-on-Thames. Judy bought the piece directly from Natasha at a fair in the USA some years ago.

Something about the central design on this tray by Natasha reminds me of Claude Lorrain. The framing device of the temples; the trees and distant hills; the figures in classical dress. When I saw this tray, I was surprised: it’s larger than the other trays I’ve seen by Natasha and its subject matter was very different from the floral designs or hunting scenes with which I’m more familiar. I couldn’t resist it. It will look wonderful as a key feature in the Breakfast Room, among other graceful pieces.