(Antwerp 1601–1678)
Still life of flowers in a vase,
oil on panel, 46.7 x 34 cm, framed

We are grateful to Klaus Ertz for confirming the attribution of the present painting after examination in the original. A written certificate is available.

Here we see a flower arrangement, made up of peonies, tulips, iris, cornflowers and marigold, in an engobed ceramic vase. The composition is relaxed and expertly adapted to the painting’s format. The young Jan Brueghel II already created floral still lifes in collaboration with his father, Jan Brueghel I. Later he continued his father’s legacy of creating flower paintings of the highest quality. He succeeded in producing original compositions to meet the high demand for such still lifes. The concept of vanitas always underlies the flower still lifes of this time, for the blooming flowers are destined to wilt and are therefore, like man, transient objects. Barbara Welzel explains: “Precisely the flower paintings celebrate the triumph of art over the transience of nature. It is in the artful staging of naturalness, combined with simultaneous moments of disillusionment, that the adept artistry is made evident” (see: B. Welzel, Kunstvolle Inszenierung von Natürlichkeit, Anmerkungen zu den Blumenstillleben Jan Brueghels d. Ä., in Wolfenbütteler Arbeiten zur Barockforschung, Laufhütte 2000, p. 556).