This enchanting picture, by Dutch artist Roelandt Savery, combines unearthly, misty colours, deep shadows and strange beasts. The musician fixing us with an enquiring eye is Orpheus. His story comes from one of the legends told by the Roman poet Ovid in his book, ‘Metamorphoses’.

Orpheus' skill was so great that all the beasts and birds came to hear him play. Even the gods themselves listened, beguiled, and the poet tells how the trees moved from the forests to hear him, and to give him shade from the sun.

Savery beguiles us with the animals he paints, taking us to an idyllic landscape where animals, usually hostile to each other, live harmoniously under the influence of Orpheus’ music.

Join us for a brief introduction to this painting, our picture of the month for August.

Supported by Elizabeth and Daniel Peltz OBE