Flower Study
Jan Baptiste, Previously attributed to; Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer, After;
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About the Work
“This
absolute
treasure
has
held
my
fascination
since
I
first
saw
it
on
display
a
few
years
ago.
The
flowers
of
course
are
exquisite,
made
all
the
more
dramatic
against
an
unlit
background,
which
itself
holds
many
secrets.
While
most
of
the
flowers
are
bathed
in
light,
there
are
parrot
tulips,
carnations
and
Dutch
irises
waiting
to
be
discovered
in
the
shadows.
It
makes
me
question
so
many
things.
How
did
Baptiste
study
his
flowers?
Did
he
sketch
them
first?
Did
he
dissect
them?
Did
he
wait
for
them
to
bloom
for
botanical
correctness?
If
only
paintings
could
talk!
The
undulating
background
landscape
is
something
of
a
conundrum;
it
would
seem
perhaps
unlikely
that
the
artist
saw
this
from
his
Amsterdam
location
considering
the
completely
flat
terrain
of
the
Netherlands.
The
understated
urn
with
its
Bacchus
mask
relief
appears
to
be
classically
Roman,
so
perhaps
Baptiste
had
been
inspired
by
a
trip
to
Italy
to
paint
such
a
landscape?”
- Tracy Byatt 'My Choice' March 2021
This painting '...has traditionally been attributed to a little-known Dutch artist called Jan Baptiste, who was active in Amsertdam from 1629 - 1640. The work bridges the more straightforward compositions of the 17th-century Bosschaert family of Dutch flower painters, in which simple arrangements of flowers stand against a light background, and the more complex arrangements favoured by the French Baroque artist Jean Baptiste Monnoyer (c.1634 - 1699), who often signed his work Baptiste. Monnoyer's work has a brownish palette which is very similar to this painting. However, so many flower painters imitated each other that attribution can be somewhat difficult.' Mary Kisler (2010) 'Angels & Aristocrats. Early European Art in New Zealand Public Collections', Auckland: Random House NZ
In Holland during the Seventeenth-Century, and in the wake of the Reformation, still life painting was immensely popular. The Reformation was a schism within Western Christianity in the Sixteenth Century which saw the creation of the Protestant Church. This new religious movement striped traditional Catholic ornamentation and portraiture from Churches and homes, thus depriving artists of their main source of commissions. To counter this artists’ turned to painting flowers and interiors, infusing them with symbolic meaning. Still life paintings (images of fruit, flowers and inanimate objects) often evoke death and the impermanence of life, the beauty of a flower in the process of dying as it wilts in a vase. Some flowers are tightly coiled buds ready to bloom, or are vibrant with their heads full, while others are drooping or falling to the table below. Flowers themselves have strong symbolism and allegorical meanings. In this painting we see a vast array of blooms, including lilies which traditionally mean purity and roses which in the Seventeenth-Century symbolised beauty. With its exquisite detail this masterful work of art by Jan Baptiste is an example of still life painting at its finest. What sets this painting apart from other works of its ilk is the inclusion of a background landscape. A still life is almost universally painted as an interior scene and the blending of art genres makes Jan Baptiste’s Flower Study all the more fascinating.
- Chronicle article, Sarah McClintock, April 2013
- Tracy Byatt 'My Choice' March 2021
This painting '...has traditionally been attributed to a little-known Dutch artist called Jan Baptiste, who was active in Amsertdam from 1629 - 1640. The work bridges the more straightforward compositions of the 17th-century Bosschaert family of Dutch flower painters, in which simple arrangements of flowers stand against a light background, and the more complex arrangements favoured by the French Baroque artist Jean Baptiste Monnoyer (c.1634 - 1699), who often signed his work Baptiste. Monnoyer's work has a brownish palette which is very similar to this painting. However, so many flower painters imitated each other that attribution can be somewhat difficult.' Mary Kisler (2010) 'Angels & Aristocrats. Early European Art in New Zealand Public Collections', Auckland: Random House NZ
In Holland during the Seventeenth-Century, and in the wake of the Reformation, still life painting was immensely popular. The Reformation was a schism within Western Christianity in the Sixteenth Century which saw the creation of the Protestant Church. This new religious movement striped traditional Catholic ornamentation and portraiture from Churches and homes, thus depriving artists of their main source of commissions. To counter this artists’ turned to painting flowers and interiors, infusing them with symbolic meaning. Still life paintings (images of fruit, flowers and inanimate objects) often evoke death and the impermanence of life, the beauty of a flower in the process of dying as it wilts in a vase. Some flowers are tightly coiled buds ready to bloom, or are vibrant with their heads full, while others are drooping or falling to the table below. Flowers themselves have strong symbolism and allegorical meanings. In this painting we see a vast array of blooms, including lilies which traditionally mean purity and roses which in the Seventeenth-Century symbolised beauty. With its exquisite detail this masterful work of art by Jan Baptiste is an example of still life painting at its finest. What sets this painting apart from other works of its ilk is the inclusion of a background landscape. A still life is almost universally painted as an interior scene and the blending of art genres makes Jan Baptiste’s Flower Study all the more fascinating.
- Chronicle article, Sarah McClintock, April 2013
Measurements
Image 1158 x 950mm
Frame 1280 x 1076 x 65mm
Frame 1280 x 1076 x 65mm
Media
oil on canvas
Description
Still life painting of flowers. Showing flowers spilling out of an urn with either a window or a lanscape painting in the background.
Credit Line
Collection of the Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua Whanganui. Gift of Mrs P. Riddiford, 1964.
Collection Type
Permanent collection
Acquisition Date
07 Apr 1964
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Accession Number:
1964/3/1