Surprise Treat

We had a bit of a surprise treat yesterday. Our habitual makeshift spot in the stairwell of the museum where we usually have our classes was occupied by a catering business for some kind of evening do. Alternatively we were ushered into the Council Chamber. It used to be the boardroom for the painters guild of Saint Luke. A tiled wall above the impressive (yet slightly tacky) fireplace cannot be overlooked. I was seated right in the middle of the table facing the dominating wall.
Very nice. Very swanky. During our five minute brake we gazed at and ogled some of the 17th century artworks adorning the room; a still life by Jan Baptist Bosschaert (1667-1746), 'Animal concert' by Jan Van Kessel I (1626-1679), 'Oriental Port' by Hendrik van Minderhout (1630-1696).
On a side note, it struck me as being too hot in the room even for a conservatory plant like myself. There was a humidity controller and one of those paper graph scroll thingies on the buffet, but the lights glaring full blaze combined with excessive heating will probably not do the masterworks any favour.

The table we were using for our readers and course papers looked like it was being used for an emergency meeting called together during a cabinet crisis.