Jan Brueghel the Elder — Still Life of Flowers in a Stoneware Vase, c. 1607.
Painting: oil on oak panel, 67 x 51 cm. Private collection.
Based on Brueghel’s correspondence, we know that the artist’s ambition was to depict the rare and beautiful in nature, as naturalistically as possible. He writes in an August 1606 letter:
[The painting is remarkable] as much for naturalness as for the beauty and rarity of various flowers. Some are unknown and little seen in this area; for this, I have been to Brussels in order to depict some few flowers alla prima [directly from the natural source] that are not found in Antwerp… .
In this picture I have invested all my skill. I do not believe that so many rare and different flowers have ever been painted before, nor finished with such diligence: it will be a fine sight in the winter. Some of the colors are very close to the real thing.
Read more: Bruegel’s Still Life of Flowers in a Stoneware Vase
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Originally published on Art of Darkness: Daily Art Blog
