A young gentleman courting an elegant lady beneath a statue of Venus on a quay, with figures merrymaking and boarding a ferry beyond

Taught by his father, Jan Baptist Weenix, Jan Weenix became a member of the Utrecht guild by 1664. While known primarily for his game and hunting still lifes, Weenix painted several scenes of elegantly attired figures in Italianate harbors. These early paintings were largely inspired by his father's landscape paintings of Italy and focus on vertical compositions anchored by a sculpture on a pedestal towering over figures against the backdrop of a port (A. Van Wagenberg-Ter Hoeven, op. cit., p. 89). This painting dates from 1675, a period within which Weenix gained confidence in his own invented schemes and play of light within his compositions.

Late afternoon light falls strongly on the figural group at the base of the pedestal, illuminating the seated girl as she delicately feeds a parrot. Richly dressed, she focuses on her pet despite her equally elegant companion's vain attempt to draw her attention in the direction of his outstretched hand, perhaps to warn her that she may literally miss the boat. A well dressed couple at right prepares to embark on the gondola with dogs at their feet, while figures to the left cavort and smoke in the dim light. The asymmetry is emphasized by the receding composition on either side of the statue, pulling the eye into the stately and bustling harbor as imagined by Weenix. Weenix may have injected a moralizing element to the two distinct sides of life on either side of the stoic and enduring statue, a warning against the distraction of fleeting entertainment.