Still Life Painting before 1800
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : French painting < 1860 18th century painting Oil on copper Ancient Spain
Chronology : 1600-1609 1640-1649 1650-1659 1660-1679 18th century 1760-1769
See also : French painting < 1860 18th century painting Oil on copper Ancient Spain
Chronology : 1600-1609 1640-1649 1650-1659 1660-1679 18th century 1760-1769
breakthrough
1606 Flowers by Jan Brueghel
Pinacoteca Ambrosiana
A precocious artist, Jan Brueghel found patrons in Italy. Back in Antwerp in 1596, he remains in touch with the young cardinal Federico Borromeo recently appointed Archbishop of Milan.
Tastes change. Religious wars bring a political suspicion towards religious themes. In Prague Rudolf II prefers the observation of nature to his political commitments. Hoefnagel draws and paints for that emperor some collections of flowers and animals.
Borromeo desired a representation of blossoms in the whole variety of their shapes and colors for brightening his living throughout the year, so enjoying nature even outside the blooming period.
Brueghel's artistic process is documented by his 1606 letters to Borromeo while a prototype painting was in progress.
After choosing the varieties of the flowers, he had to wait for their blossoming which was not simultaneous, in spring and summer. Each bloom in its full glorious development was added in its turn on the copper in a pre-defined position. They were drawn from nature without an intermediary drawing. In his quest for exactness he had also travelled to Brussels to observe some blossoms which were not available in Antwerp.
The referred masterpiece is now kept at the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana in Milan. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
It is an oil on copper 65 x 45 cm, a very large size for this technique at that time. The great variety of brilliant colors met the expectation of the cardinal. The overcrowding of the flowers in the vase is unrealistic : it is an artistic trick to escape the didactic alignments of Hoefnagel. Brueghel's intention was not mystical or scientific. He desired to compare the beauty of the flowers to that of gemstones and paid the utmost attention to colors and light. He was obviously happy with his achievement.
The major picture from the next year 1607 is now kept at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. It is a 51 x 40 cm oil on panel, the best technique after the copper for the precision of the brushwork and the conservation of the pigments, less demanding in terms of skills. Customers were appealed by this novelty and Brueghel certainly painted a few panels in parallel.
A large oil on oak panel 67 x 51 cm was sold for £ 3.85M by Sotheby's on July 6, 2016, lot 11. It is a slightly later development with a looser and more pleasing arrangement of the flowers, dated circa 1608 by experts. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The artist gave up soon although not before 1611 the painting of flowers by direct observation and these early works will then serve as modelli. The goal remains decorative. Other artists will add the use of flowers and small animals as symbols and also the arrangements inside wreaths.
Tastes change. Religious wars bring a political suspicion towards religious themes. In Prague Rudolf II prefers the observation of nature to his political commitments. Hoefnagel draws and paints for that emperor some collections of flowers and animals.
Borromeo desired a representation of blossoms in the whole variety of their shapes and colors for brightening his living throughout the year, so enjoying nature even outside the blooming period.
Brueghel's artistic process is documented by his 1606 letters to Borromeo while a prototype painting was in progress.
After choosing the varieties of the flowers, he had to wait for their blossoming which was not simultaneous, in spring and summer. Each bloom in its full glorious development was added in its turn on the copper in a pre-defined position. They were drawn from nature without an intermediary drawing. In his quest for exactness he had also travelled to Brussels to observe some blossoms which were not available in Antwerp.
The referred masterpiece is now kept at the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana in Milan. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
It is an oil on copper 65 x 45 cm, a very large size for this technique at that time. The great variety of brilliant colors met the expectation of the cardinal. The overcrowding of the flowers in the vase is unrealistic : it is an artistic trick to escape the didactic alignments of Hoefnagel. Brueghel's intention was not mystical or scientific. He desired to compare the beauty of the flowers to that of gemstones and paid the utmost attention to colors and light. He was obviously happy with his achievement.
The major picture from the next year 1607 is now kept at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. It is a 51 x 40 cm oil on panel, the best technique after the copper for the precision of the brushwork and the conservation of the pigments, less demanding in terms of skills. Customers were appealed by this novelty and Brueghel certainly painted a few panels in parallel.
A large oil on oak panel 67 x 51 cm was sold for £ 3.85M by Sotheby's on July 6, 2016, lot 11. It is a slightly later development with a looser and more pleasing arrangement of the flowers, dated circa 1608 by experts. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The artist gave up soon although not before 1611 the painting of flowers by direct observation and these early works will then serve as modelli. The goal remains decorative. Other artists will add the use of flowers and small animals as symbols and also the arrangements inside wreaths.
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1608 Bouquet by Bosschaert
2008 SOLD for CHF 5.8M by Koller
At the time of the development of botanical gardens and pleasure gardens, the bouquet of flowers discreetly animated by insects and lizards becomes an autonomous theme in painting. It has as precursors Dürer and Hoefnagel.
The tradition of Dürer's naturalistic image had been maintained at Nuremberg by Hans Hoffmann. Accompanying the craze for cabinets of curiosity, Hoefnagel gathered images of plants and small animals in disparate and didactic alignments that somewhat evoke the insect boxes of our modern entomologists.
The island town of Middelburg in Zeeland had a strong cultural and scientific activity including an important botanical garden. In 1593 Bosschaert is identified as a member of the local guild of Saint Luke. His earliest dated paintings, in 1605, are full-page images in the style of Hoefnagel.
Bosschaert and Brueghel invent the painting of bouquets in a vase in 1606. Working for Cardinal Borromeo but residing in Antwerp, Brueghel paints opulent accumulations mixing flowers of all seasons.
Bosschaert paints simpler arrangements on copper in small format. In this early phase we must not look for a specific meaning behind each flower. It must instead be considered that the cultivation of ornamental flowers, imported from the East and modified by skillful hybridizers, is considered as a top luxury in the Netherlands of his time. Ambitious and aware of the importance of his art, Bosschaert signs with a monogram AB imitating the AD of Dürer.
Ambrosius Bosschaert the elder is so named today to distinguish him from his son Ambrosius. The latter, the elder's other sons Abraham and Johannes, and his brother in law and pupil Balthasar van der Ast also painted still lifes. The technique on copper allows a great naturalistic precision.
On July 10, 2002, Sotheby's sold for £ 2.1M a Bouquet in a window, oil on copper 28 x 23 cm by the elder and for £ 950K an oval oil on copper made in 1624 by Balthasar.
An oil on copper 26 x 18 cm by the elder depicting a bouquet of flowers in a glass, a butterfly and a shell was sold for CHF 5.8M from a lower estimate of CHF 2.5M by Koller on September 19, 2008. The composition, well centered, highlights the tulips. The painting is monogramed AB, and includes a trace of date: 160., probably 1608. This piece is in exceptional condition after being kept for 150 years in the same collection.
With a very similar composition, another oil on copper by the elder, 30 x 20 cm, was sold for £ 1.75M by Sotheby's in London in July 2000. The flowers were more numerous and less dispersed. In both works, the glass is almost identical.
On January 30, 2019, Sotheby's sold for $ 3M an oil on copper 24 x 18 cm painted by Bosschaert the in 1607, lot 26, displaying other flowers in a similar composition.
The tradition of Dürer's naturalistic image had been maintained at Nuremberg by Hans Hoffmann. Accompanying the craze for cabinets of curiosity, Hoefnagel gathered images of plants and small animals in disparate and didactic alignments that somewhat evoke the insect boxes of our modern entomologists.
The island town of Middelburg in Zeeland had a strong cultural and scientific activity including an important botanical garden. In 1593 Bosschaert is identified as a member of the local guild of Saint Luke. His earliest dated paintings, in 1605, are full-page images in the style of Hoefnagel.
Bosschaert and Brueghel invent the painting of bouquets in a vase in 1606. Working for Cardinal Borromeo but residing in Antwerp, Brueghel paints opulent accumulations mixing flowers of all seasons.
Bosschaert paints simpler arrangements on copper in small format. In this early phase we must not look for a specific meaning behind each flower. It must instead be considered that the cultivation of ornamental flowers, imported from the East and modified by skillful hybridizers, is considered as a top luxury in the Netherlands of his time. Ambitious and aware of the importance of his art, Bosschaert signs with a monogram AB imitating the AD of Dürer.
Ambrosius Bosschaert the elder is so named today to distinguish him from his son Ambrosius. The latter, the elder's other sons Abraham and Johannes, and his brother in law and pupil Balthasar van der Ast also painted still lifes. The technique on copper allows a great naturalistic precision.
On July 10, 2002, Sotheby's sold for £ 2.1M a Bouquet in a window, oil on copper 28 x 23 cm by the elder and for £ 950K an oval oil on copper made in 1624 by Balthasar.
An oil on copper 26 x 18 cm by the elder depicting a bouquet of flowers in a glass, a butterfly and a shell was sold for CHF 5.8M from a lower estimate of CHF 2.5M by Koller on September 19, 2008. The composition, well centered, highlights the tulips. The painting is monogramed AB, and includes a trace of date: 160., probably 1608. This piece is in exceptional condition after being kept for 150 years in the same collection.
With a very similar composition, another oil on copper by the elder, 30 x 20 cm, was sold for £ 1.75M by Sotheby's in London in July 2000. The flowers were more numerous and less dispersed. In both works, the glass is almost identical.
On January 30, 2019, Sotheby's sold for $ 3M an oil on copper 24 x 18 cm painted by Bosschaert the in 1607, lot 26, displaying other flowers in a similar composition.
1629 Bodegon of Fruit by van der Hamen y Leon
2019 SOLD for $ 6.5M by Christie's
Juan Sanchez Cotan is a painter in Toledo at the time of El Greco. In 1603 he leaves the world to enter as a lay brother in a Carthusian monastery. The inventory made in his studio just after his departure lists 60 paintings including 12 still lifes.
Sanchez Cotan wished to reproduce with the greatest pictorial accuracy some elements of nature that he positions in a balanced composition. Vegetables, fruit and game fowls are laying or hanging in a uniformly gray window frame against a black background. He had invented the bodegon, an unprecedented style in modern painting that anticipates Chardin and Cézanne.
Several originals survive. One of them is dated 1602. Another one, oil on canvas re-sized at 73 x 62 cm after removal of the central part, was sold for £ 4M by Christie's on December 8, 2004.
The growing interest in botanical gardens and cabinets of curiosity led to the still life paintings of flowers and fruit in Flanders and Milan from 1606. In the 1620s the best Spanish continuator to Sanchez Cotan, Juan van der Hamen y Leon, inserts flowers in the bodegones.
In 1626 van der Hamen finds a trick to display complex arrangements in very large formats : he replaces Sanchez Cotan's window by three stone bases of varying heights and widths.
A bodegon of fruit with a large vase of flowers, oil on canvas 86 x 132 cm painted by van der Hamen in 1629, was sold for $ 6.5M by Christie's on May 1, 2019, lot 109. Painted in the same year and style by the same artist, a bodegon of fruit with an artichoke, 79 x 100 cm, was sold for € 900K by Christie's on October 6, 2004.
Sanchez Cotan wished to reproduce with the greatest pictorial accuracy some elements of nature that he positions in a balanced composition. Vegetables, fruit and game fowls are laying or hanging in a uniformly gray window frame against a black background. He had invented the bodegon, an unprecedented style in modern painting that anticipates Chardin and Cézanne.
Several originals survive. One of them is dated 1602. Another one, oil on canvas re-sized at 73 x 62 cm after removal of the central part, was sold for £ 4M by Christie's on December 8, 2004.
The growing interest in botanical gardens and cabinets of curiosity led to the still life paintings of flowers and fruit in Flanders and Milan from 1606. In the 1620s the best Spanish continuator to Sanchez Cotan, Juan van der Hamen y Leon, inserts flowers in the bodegones.
In 1626 van der Hamen finds a trick to display complex arrangements in very large formats : he replaces Sanchez Cotan's window by three stone bases of varying heights and widths.
A bodegon of fruit with a large vase of flowers, oil on canvas 86 x 132 cm painted by van der Hamen in 1629, was sold for $ 6.5M by Christie's on May 1, 2019, lot 109. Painted in the same year and style by the same artist, a bodegon of fruit with an artichoke, 79 x 100 cm, was sold for € 900K by Christie's on October 6, 2004.
Christie’s to Sell Shickman Collection Led by Spanish Still Lives https://t.co/DUYZZPBEnR pic.twitter.com/xSsE0vtely
— Art Market Monitor (@artmarket) November 21, 2018
de HEEM
1
masterpiece
1640 Table of Desserts
Louvre
Developed since the beginning of the 17th century as a supplement or a minor art, still life enters a new phase around 1640. The Flemish had brought naturalism and the Dutch had brought the light. Fruits and other foods have joined the bouquets, with Clara Peeters and Willem Heda.
Antwerp and Utrecht are 150 km apart and artistic links are strong between the two cities. The two most important painters of the new style, the Pronkstilleven, are Johannes van Antwerpen, born in Utrecht, who will be known as Jan Davidsz de Heem, and Adriaen van Utrecht, born in Antwerp.
Still life shows by definition perishable objects. His baroque Pronkstilleven reinforces the message of vanity through the abundance of scarce foods, the unstable mess on the banquet preparation table and the presence of musical instruments. The rich colors made of expensive pigments supersede the effects of light displayed in Haarlem by Heda.
De Heem was a member of the Antwerp guild in 1636, after having been trained in Utrecht and Leiden. Between 1640 and 1643, he realizes four monumental works, which will remain the largest of his career, at the apparent rate of one painting per year. His customers have not been identified.
Table of Desserts, oil on canvas 1.45 x 2 m preserved in the Louvre, appears as the first in this series. The imbalance of the objects on the crumpled tablecloth will inspire Cézanne's research and the "Nature morte d'après de Heem" painted by Matisse in 1915 is a modernist remake of this specific work.
Antwerp and Utrecht are 150 km apart and artistic links are strong between the two cities. The two most important painters of the new style, the Pronkstilleven, are Johannes van Antwerpen, born in Utrecht, who will be known as Jan Davidsz de Heem, and Adriaen van Utrecht, born in Antwerp.
Still life shows by definition perishable objects. His baroque Pronkstilleven reinforces the message of vanity through the abundance of scarce foods, the unstable mess on the banquet preparation table and the presence of musical instruments. The rich colors made of expensive pigments supersede the effects of light displayed in Haarlem by Heda.
De Heem was a member of the Antwerp guild in 1636, after having been trained in Utrecht and Leiden. Between 1640 and 1643, he realizes four monumental works, which will remain the largest of his career, at the apparent rate of one painting per year. His customers have not been identified.
Table of Desserts, oil on canvas 1.45 x 2 m preserved in the Louvre, appears as the first in this series. The imbalance of the objects on the crumpled tablecloth will inspire Cézanne's research and the "Nature morte d'après de Heem" painted by Matisse in 1915 is a modernist remake of this specific work.
2
1642 Banquet with Lobster
1988 SOLD for $ 6.6M by Christie's
The second painting is the largest at 2.60 m wide. It is kept at the City Museum in Brussels. This still life with black servant and parrot may also be titled The meal in jeopardy.
The third is the Banquet Still Life with a Lobster, 152 x 206 cm executed in 1642, that may also be titled A Lavish banquet still life, flanked by columns, before a landscape. It was sold for $ 6.6M by Christie's on January 15, 1988. It is illustrated in 3rd position in a story by the auction house.
The third is the Banquet Still Life with a Lobster, 152 x 206 cm executed in 1642, that may also be titled A Lavish banquet still life, flanked by columns, before a landscape. It was sold for $ 6.6M by Christie's on January 15, 1988. It is illustrated in 3rd position in a story by the auction house.
3
1643 Banquet
2020 SOLD for £ 5.8M by Christie's
The fourth painting, oil on canvas 155 x 211 cm painted in 1643, had not been seen since an auction in 1817 and is still uncleaned. It was sold for £ 5.8M from a lower estimate of £ 4M by Christie's in London on December 15, 2020, lot 10. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
An untitled painting dated 1649 by de Heem is a synthesis of the series of four Banquets from the early 1640s. The smaller format, 75 x 113 cm, enables a finer execution. It was then sold by Christie's for £ 3.7M on July 1, 2025, lot 4.
A later banquet still life, oil on canvas 140 x 115 cm painted by de Heem in his style of the mid 1660s with a brilliant light, was sold for £ 3.14M by Christie's on July 8, 2021, lot 21. It includes a string instrument in the foreground and a music sheet, representing the transitory pleasures in the midst of the exuberant luxury of the banquet artifacts.
An untitled painting dated 1649 by de Heem is a synthesis of the series of four Banquets from the early 1640s. The smaller format, 75 x 113 cm, enables a finer execution. It was then sold by Christie's for £ 3.7M on July 1, 2025, lot 4.
A later banquet still life, oil on canvas 140 x 115 cm painted by de Heem in his style of the mid 1660s with a brilliant light, was sold for £ 3.14M by Christie's on July 8, 2021, lot 21. It includes a string instrument in the foreground and a music sheet, representing the transitory pleasures in the midst of the exuberant luxury of the banquet artifacts.
4
1673-1674 Flower Piece
2025 SOLD for $ 8.8M by Sotheby's
From 1655 Jan de Heem executed lavish flower bouquets with a meaning of vanitas. After the same year he did not date his work any more. Nevertheless his most lavish compositions were made after he came back to Antwerp from Utrecht in 1672 following the French invasion of the Netherlands.
A tabletop of flowers in a glass vase, oil on canvas 114 x 91 cm painted by de Heem before 1672, was sold for £ 3M by Christie's on July 3, 2012, lot 43.
An opulent bouquet on a baluster base with a great care to details may be dated around 1673-1674. The glass vase is very densely populated with roses, tulips, lilies, poppies, some honeysuckle, a sunflower, an iris, plus grasses and wheat. It is accompanied by two finches, a grasshopper, a snail and other small lively creatures.
Amidst this opulence the threatening vanitas decay is symbolized by an overblown tulip, by gnawed leaves, and by the presence of the destructive cricket and caterpillar.
This oil on canvas 100 x 76 cm is beautifully preserved and remarkably fresh. It was sold for $ 8.8M by Sotheby's on May 21, 2025, lot 9.
A tabletop of flowers in a glass vase, oil on canvas 114 x 91 cm painted by de Heem before 1672, was sold for £ 3M by Christie's on July 3, 2012, lot 43.
An opulent bouquet on a baluster base with a great care to details may be dated around 1673-1674. The glass vase is very densely populated with roses, tulips, lilies, poppies, some honeysuckle, a sunflower, an iris, plus grasses and wheat. It is accompanied by two finches, a grasshopper, a snail and other small lively creatures.
Amidst this opulence the threatening vanitas decay is symbolized by an overblown tulip, by gnawed leaves, and by the presence of the destructive cricket and caterpillar.
This oil on canvas 100 x 76 cm is beautifully preserved and remarkably fresh. It was sold for $ 8.8M by Sotheby's on May 21, 2025, lot 9.
1644 Still Life by Heda
2014 SOLD for £ 4.8M by Christie's
Willem Claesz Heda wanted that his paintings closely resemble the real objects. He succeeded in his goal by an extreme care in the textures and a detailed study of the reflections of light.
For four decades, he worked a single theme: the still life of foods and utensils for breakfast on a tablecloth covering almost the entire table. This choice was perhaps inspired by his early training as a painter of vanities. The fruit is ephemeral and the utensil is permanent.
In the 1630s, his composition is rigorous, in a great simplicity which certainly inspired the minimalism of Coorte half a century later. The foods are strictly included within the perimeter lines of the table top. Only the higher part of the utensils and the hanging lemon peel are beyond this zone.
On July 8, 2015, Sotheby's sold for £ 2.95M an oil on panel 59 x 80 cm painted in 1633, lot 12. This artwork is a good example of Heda's improved realism through a subtle treatment of light. The contrasted areas in the background indicate where daylight comes from. The surrounding that escapes direct vision is however visible in the multiple reflections of a single window, in glasses, silverware and olives but not in pewter.
Subsequent compositions with a crumpled tablecloth and an increased quantity of objects are more complex. The artist desired to demonstrate that his control of geometry could be applied not only to order but also to disorder.
An oil on panel 81 x 102 cm painted in 1644 was sold for £ 4.8M by Christie's on July 8, 2014 from a lower estimate of £ 1.5M, lot 31.
It features a blackberry pie on a pewter platter, a silver-gilded cup and cover, an upturned tazza, a partly-peeled lemon, a bread roll, hazelnuts, a façon-de-Venise glass, a silver decanter, a roemer, and a knife on a pewter platter, on a partly draped table.
For four decades, he worked a single theme: the still life of foods and utensils for breakfast on a tablecloth covering almost the entire table. This choice was perhaps inspired by his early training as a painter of vanities. The fruit is ephemeral and the utensil is permanent.
In the 1630s, his composition is rigorous, in a great simplicity which certainly inspired the minimalism of Coorte half a century later. The foods are strictly included within the perimeter lines of the table top. Only the higher part of the utensils and the hanging lemon peel are beyond this zone.
On July 8, 2015, Sotheby's sold for £ 2.95M an oil on panel 59 x 80 cm painted in 1633, lot 12. This artwork is a good example of Heda's improved realism through a subtle treatment of light. The contrasted areas in the background indicate where daylight comes from. The surrounding that escapes direct vision is however visible in the multiple reflections of a single window, in glasses, silverware and olives but not in pewter.
Subsequent compositions with a crumpled tablecloth and an increased quantity of objects are more complex. The artist desired to demonstrate that his control of geometry could be applied not only to order but also to disorder.
An oil on panel 81 x 102 cm painted in 1644 was sold for £ 4.8M by Christie's on July 8, 2014 from a lower estimate of £ 1.5M, lot 31.
It features a blackberry pie on a pewter platter, a silver-gilded cup and cover, an upturned tazza, a partly-peeled lemon, a bread roll, hazelnuts, a façon-de-Venise glass, a silver decanter, a roemer, and a knife on a pewter platter, on a partly draped table.
1653-1657 Young Woman holding a Hare by Dou
2023 SOLD for $ 7.1M by Christie's
Gerrit Dou, who also signed as Dov, has devoted his life to his art, painting. After being one of the best collaborators of Rembrandt, he worked in Leiden. He was so meticulous that he finished, they say, some of his paintings with a magnifying glass. He preferred working on panel to avoid the grain of a canvas. He specialized in genre scenes of daily tasks.
On May 12, 2012, Lempertz sold for € 3.8M an allegory of painting signed by Dov in 1649, lot 1258. Sizing 68 x 53 cm, it is one of the largest works by the artist.
The old painter is installed in front of an easel, focused on his work. This is not a self-portrait : the artist was then 36 years old. Various sources of inspiration are arranged around him. Nature is represented by a big dead peacock, poetry by a flying Eros, knowledge by a book, art by a bust, interior scene by a metal pot and a heavy curtain. The workshop is beautifully lit, assessing the influence of Rembrandt.
The trompe-l'oeil arched window ledge is a preferred arrangement by the artist. On October 11, 2023, Christie's sells a painting staging a young woman, possibly a servant, holding a hare by its hind legs for hanging it at the hook with a boy attending.
The scene includes a tabletop in the foreground with a profusion of elements including a large basket of apples. By comparison of these reused figures with dated works, it may be dated between 1653 and 1657. No allegorical meaning is found and this work was possibly intended to demonstrate the skill of the artist in still lifes.
This oil on panel 53 x 38 cm was sold for $ 7.1M from a lower estimate of $ 3M in the sale of a Rothschild collection, lot 21. It had been confiscated by the Nazi to a Rothschild baron, acquired by Göring and restituted in 1946.
On May 12, 2012, Lempertz sold for € 3.8M an allegory of painting signed by Dov in 1649, lot 1258. Sizing 68 x 53 cm, it is one of the largest works by the artist.
The old painter is installed in front of an easel, focused on his work. This is not a self-portrait : the artist was then 36 years old. Various sources of inspiration are arranged around him. Nature is represented by a big dead peacock, poetry by a flying Eros, knowledge by a book, art by a bust, interior scene by a metal pot and a heavy curtain. The workshop is beautifully lit, assessing the influence of Rembrandt.
The trompe-l'oeil arched window ledge is a preferred arrangement by the artist. On October 11, 2023, Christie's sells a painting staging a young woman, possibly a servant, holding a hare by its hind legs for hanging it at the hook with a boy attending.
The scene includes a tabletop in the foreground with a profusion of elements including a large basket of apples. By comparison of these reused figures with dated works, it may be dated between 1653 and 1657. No allegorical meaning is found and this work was possibly intended to demonstrate the skill of the artist in still lifes.
This oil on panel 53 x 38 cm was sold for $ 7.1M from a lower estimate of $ 3M in the sale of a Rothschild collection, lot 21. It had been confiscated by the Nazi to a Rothschild baron, acquired by Göring and restituted in 1946.
1730 Flowers in a Vase by van Huysum
2006 SOLD for $ 7.3M by Sotheby's
Justus van Huysum is a still life painter based in Amsterdam. His bouquets are of a classic composition on a black background, to better highlight the colors of the flowers according to the taste of the time. His sons Jan and Jacob join him in this specialty.
The art of Jan van Huysum art assured him a great career, despite a difficult temperament : aware of his genius, he became jealous of his own art.
Justus dies in 1716. Jan van Huysum tries the oil on copper and adds the fruits. His quest for realism includes a great attention to botany, of which his brother will soon become one of the best illustrators. Naturalism prevails over symbolism. Jan thus demonstrates his talent and soon has an international clientele.
An oil on panel 80 x 60 cm was sold for £ 3.26M by Sotheby's on July 5, 2006, lot 37. It was painted between 1718 and 1722, a period of transition in Jan's art before he breaks with tradition by opting for lighter backgrounds.
Fruits in a wide variety of types and colors are placed on a ledge next to a nest filled with eggs. This very dense composition is completed by flowers and leaves in the upper part.
Flowers in a Terracotta Vase on a Marble Ledge, oil on mahogany panel 80 x 61 cm painted in 1730 by Jan van Huysum, was sold for $ 7.3M by Sotheby's on January 26, 2006, lot 72. This period marks a shift from dark background to a luminous background that better highlights the flowers.
The flowers are tightly tangled. Each of them is shown with a meticulous realism, but the bouquet assembly is extravagant, like an excuse to accommodate the infinite variations of color and light. Jan van Huysum is an unexpected precursor of modern art.
Thirty different varieties of plants and flowers are included here, all of which can be specifically identified, with a careful consistency in the blooming period. Each vein of the flies’ wings is minutely observed and faithfully reproduced. A bird’s nest is slightly tilted to display twigs, feathers and eggs. This piece had a pendant of fruit of which it was separated in 1930.
A tightly composed Still life of grapes and peaches with flowers in a basket with plums in the foreground, all upon a marble ledge before an urn and column, oil on panel 80 x 60 cm painted by Jan van Huysum in 1730-1735, was sold for £ 4.9M by Sotheby's on December 11, 2003, lot 75. Its prestigious provenance includes the duc de Berry and the Rothschild family. The transparency of colors of the purple and white grapes is delightful.
The art of Jan van Huysum art assured him a great career, despite a difficult temperament : aware of his genius, he became jealous of his own art.
Justus dies in 1716. Jan van Huysum tries the oil on copper and adds the fruits. His quest for realism includes a great attention to botany, of which his brother will soon become one of the best illustrators. Naturalism prevails over symbolism. Jan thus demonstrates his talent and soon has an international clientele.
An oil on panel 80 x 60 cm was sold for £ 3.26M by Sotheby's on July 5, 2006, lot 37. It was painted between 1718 and 1722, a period of transition in Jan's art before he breaks with tradition by opting for lighter backgrounds.
Fruits in a wide variety of types and colors are placed on a ledge next to a nest filled with eggs. This very dense composition is completed by flowers and leaves in the upper part.
Flowers in a Terracotta Vase on a Marble Ledge, oil on mahogany panel 80 x 61 cm painted in 1730 by Jan van Huysum, was sold for $ 7.3M by Sotheby's on January 26, 2006, lot 72. This period marks a shift from dark background to a luminous background that better highlights the flowers.
The flowers are tightly tangled. Each of them is shown with a meticulous realism, but the bouquet assembly is extravagant, like an excuse to accommodate the infinite variations of color and light. Jan van Huysum is an unexpected precursor of modern art.
Thirty different varieties of plants and flowers are included here, all of which can be specifically identified, with a careful consistency in the blooming period. Each vein of the flies’ wings is minutely observed and faithfully reproduced. A bird’s nest is slightly tilted to display twigs, feathers and eggs. This piece had a pendant of fruit of which it was separated in 1930.
A tightly composed Still life of grapes and peaches with flowers in a basket with plums in the foreground, all upon a marble ledge before an urn and column, oil on panel 80 x 60 cm painted by Jan van Huysum in 1730-1735, was sold for £ 4.9M by Sotheby's on December 11, 2003, lot 75. Its prestigious provenance includes the duc de Berry and the Rothschild family. The transparency of colors of the purple and white grapes is delightful.
CHARDIN
1
for reference
1758 Le Bocal d'Abricots by Chardin
Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto)
Chardin is appointed in 1755 trésorier of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. In 1757 he is granted by King Louis XV an apartment in the Galeries du Louvre. He is also the tapissier of the annual Salon de peinture et de sculpture, in charge of the arrangement of the selected artworks.
Busy with these official functions and financially secure, Chardin executes still lifes in a new style started in 1748, very different from his earlier depictions of dead games, and closer to classical Dutch arrangements. He is more attentive to reflections, to light. The colors are less impastoed. The artist is more interested in volumes and composition than in details. The subjects are varied : game, fruits, bouquets, pots, jars, glasses.
Le Bocal d'abricots, painted and dated by Chardin in 1758, is an oval oil on canvas 57 x 51 cm. This marble table top is featuring glasses, pieces of bread, a knife, cups, a tambourine and a tied package placed around a jar containing apricots. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Busy with these official functions and financially secure, Chardin executes still lifes in a new style started in 1748, very different from his earlier depictions of dead games, and closer to classical Dutch arrangements. He is more attentive to reflections, to light. The colors are less impastoed. The artist is more interested in volumes and composition than in details. The subjects are varied : game, fruits, bouquets, pots, jars, glasses.
Le Bocal d'abricots, painted and dated by Chardin in 1758, is an oval oil on canvas 57 x 51 cm. This marble table top is featuring glasses, pieces of bread, a knife, cups, a tambourine and a tied package placed around a jar containing apricots. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
2
1760 Le Melon entamé
2024 SOLD for € 26.7M by Christie's, Unpaid
Le Bocal d'abricots was owned by the Parisian goldsmith and silversmith Jacques Roettiers. In 1760 Chardin executed and dated a pendant still life for this patron, in the same oval format.
On the same table top, two bottles and a pitcher surround a sliced melon, some peaches, plums and two pears. The freshly cut slice balanced precariously on top of the melon predated by 120 years the precarious arrangements of Cézanne's tabletops. The warm palette has been described by Rosenberg as a "mysterious half light". The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Both works were exhibited at the Salon de Peinture et de Sculpture in 1761 and illustrated by Saint-Aubin in the catalogue.
Coming from the former Marcille collection and a Rothschild provenance, Le Melon entamé was sold for € 26.7M from a lower estimate of € 8M by Christie's on June 12, 2024, lot 5.
An identical replica executed by the workshop in 1763 is owned by the Musée du Louvre.
Grok thought :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc May 30, 2024
Jean Siméon Chardin’s The Cut Melon — a spellbinding work by the ‘great magician’. This masterpiece from the Rothschild family collection is offered in Paris on 12 June. Find out more here: https://christie-s.visitlink.me/5Y7cfR
On the same table top, two bottles and a pitcher surround a sliced melon, some peaches, plums and two pears. The freshly cut slice balanced precariously on top of the melon predated by 120 years the precarious arrangements of Cézanne's tabletops. The warm palette has been described by Rosenberg as a "mysterious half light". The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Both works were exhibited at the Salon de Peinture et de Sculpture in 1761 and illustrated by Saint-Aubin in the catalogue.
Coming from the former Marcille collection and a Rothschild provenance, Le Melon entamé was sold for € 26.7M from a lower estimate of € 8M by Christie's on June 12, 2024, lot 5.
An identical replica executed by the workshop in 1763 is owned by the Musée du Louvre.
Grok thought :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc May 30, 2024
Jean Siméon Chardin’s The Cut Melon — a spellbinding work by the ‘great magician’. This masterpiece from the Rothschild family collection is offered in Paris on 12 June. Find out more here: https://christie-s.visitlink.me/5Y7cfR
- Christie's post promotes Jean Siméon Chardin's 1760 still-life "The Cut Melon," a Rothschild family masterpiece featuring a sliced cantaloupe, peaches, pears, plums, and glassware on a marble table, rendered with exquisite light and texture.
- Auctioned in Paris on June 12, 2024, the painting fetched a record €26.73 million ($28.76 million) for Chardin, surpassing prior benchmarks and underscoring his status as a pinnacle of 18th-century French realism.
- After the buyer's default, the work entered the Kimbell Art Museum's collection in May 2025, preserving public access to this "great magician's" illusion of tangible everyday objects.
Back Home…
— La Gazette Drouot – International (@Gazette_Inter) April 10, 2025
Chardin's ‘Melon entamé’ which sold for the record price of €26.7M is returned to its owners. The painting had been in default since its auction in June 2024 to an Italian Real Estate developer based in Switzerland. Declared insolvent, he was unable to pay. pic.twitter.com/XJE7Rhcu0x
3
1761 Panier de Fraises des Bois
2022 SOLD for € 24.4M by Artcurial
Jean-Siméon Chardin manages his career without taking care of artistic fashions. A highly skilled perfectionist, he takes the reality of texture and color as his top concern.
Following the path opened by Adriaen Coorte around 1700, Chardin opts for the simplest geometric tabletop compositions in a contrasted light in front of a dark raw background.
Le Panier de fraises des bois, oil on canvas 38 x 46 cm, was released for the Salon de 1761 and illustrated by Saint-Aubin in the livret of that exhibition. It displays a stack of wild strawberries as a spectacular conical tabletop in a basket. That vivid red fruit had been Coorte's preferred pictorial theme.
The composition is completed on the table by a glass filled with limpid water, and by two ornamental cut off flowers, two cherries and a peach. Chardin had skillfully added an upper layer of red lacquer to link together the grainy berries while he left slightly unfocused the carnations.
Recognized as a masterpiece of Chardin's maturity offering a perfect sharp viewing from an ideal distance of 5 m away, Le panier was kept in a private French collection since 1862. It was sold for € 24.4M from a lower estimate of € 12M by Artcurial on March 23, 2022, lot 15. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Following the path opened by Adriaen Coorte around 1700, Chardin opts for the simplest geometric tabletop compositions in a contrasted light in front of a dark raw background.
Le Panier de fraises des bois, oil on canvas 38 x 46 cm, was released for the Salon de 1761 and illustrated by Saint-Aubin in the livret of that exhibition. It displays a stack of wild strawberries as a spectacular conical tabletop in a basket. That vivid red fruit had been Coorte's preferred pictorial theme.
The composition is completed on the table by a glass filled with limpid water, and by two ornamental cut off flowers, two cherries and a peach. Chardin had skillfully added an upper layer of red lacquer to link together the grainy berries while he left slightly unfocused the carnations.
Recognized as a masterpiece of Chardin's maturity offering a perfect sharp viewing from an ideal distance of 5 m away, Le panier was kept in a private French collection since 1862. It was sold for € 24.4M from a lower estimate of € 12M by Artcurial on March 23, 2022, lot 15. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Asking Grok to compare Panier de Fraises des Bois by Chardin, sold by Artcurial on March 23, 2022, lot 15, with Le Melon entamé, sale cancelled for buyer's default after sold by Christie's on June 12, 2024, lot 5.
Overview
Both Panier de Fraises des Bois (The Basket of Wild Strawberries, c. 1761) and Le Melon Entamé (The Cut Melon, 1760) are masterpieces of still-life painting by Jean-Siméon Chardin (1699–1779), the preeminent French artist of intimate domestic scenes and everyday objects. Created at the peak of his career, these oval and rectangular compositions respectively showcase Chardin's mastery of light, texture, and subtle color harmonies, evoking a sense of quiet poetry and suspended time. They were both exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1761--Le Melon Entamé as a pendant to Le Bocal d’Abricots (now in the Art Gallery of Ontario), and Panier de Fraises des Bois independently—and share a provenance tied to the renowned Marcille collection, which amassed over 4,500 works by 18th-century French masters. These paintings highlight Chardin's influence from 17th-century Dutch still lifes, rendered with impasto techniques and soft, diffused lighting that imbues humble fruits and vessels with almost tactile presence.
Their auction histories reflect surging institutional interest in Chardin, with both setting records for the artist and 18th-century French Old Masters, though Le Melon Entamé's path was complicated by post-sale drama.
Date and Exhibition
Panier : c. 1761; exhibited at Salon of 1761 (catalogue no. 46).
Melon : 1760, signed and dated 'Chardin 1760'; exhibited at Salon of 1761 (with pendant Le Bocal d’Abricots).
Medium and DimensionsO
Panier : Oil on canvas; 38 x 46 cm (rectangular).
Melon : Oil on canvas; 57 x 51.5 cm (oval format, echoing the melon's shape).
Subject and Composition
Panier : A pyramidal basket of wild strawberries on a stone ledge, flanked by a glass of white wine, cherries, peaches, and two white carnations; simple geometric balance in white, red, and soft neutrals, with a diagonal flourish from the flowers for modern abstraction.
Melon : A sliced melon on a table, accompanied by greengage plums, peaches in a basket, two corked liqueur bottles, pears, and a flower-decorated ceramic pitcher; dynamic yet poised oval arrangement, with nuanced light creating buoyancy and volume amid rich greens, golds, and translucent flesh.
Artistic Significance
Panier : Iconic for its "extreme simplicity" and "audacious execution," blending silence and meditation; comparable to Panier de Prunes (Louvre) for its pyramidal form and peak-period assurance. Critics praise its "frank white-and-red accord" as unforgettable and proto-modern.
Melon : Monumental in scale and preservation; a "pure pictorial poetry" encapsulating Chardin's late genius in glazing, atmosphere, and half-light; invites tactile engagement with objects' weight and luster. One of his largest still lifes, rivaling Raymure à la Serviette for enveloping mellow light.
Provenance Highlights
Panier : Marcille collection (from 1862); remained in family until 2022; rediscovered in 19th century after obscurity.
Melon : Marcille collection (post-1876 sale); acquired by Baroness Nathaniel de Rothschild; descended through Rothschild heirs until 2024.
Auction Details
Panier : Artcurial, Paris, March 23, 2022, lot 15 (Maître Matthieu Fournier, with expert Éric Turquin).
Melon : Christie's, Paris, June 12, 2024, lot 5 (auctioneer Camille de Foresta).
Buyer and Outcome
Panier : New York dealer Adam Williams (on behalf of Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth); resold privately to Louvre in February 2024 for undisclosed sum (preempted export).
Melon : Italian investor Nanni Bassani Antivari; sale cancelled due to buyer's default (no payment); Christie's pursued legal action; repurchased by Rothschild heirs and sold privately to Kimbell Art Museum in 2025.
Market Impact
Panier : Set artist's record (until 2024); sparked French export debate and Louvre acquisition, affirming Chardin's rising status.
Melon : Surpassed prior record; most expensive Old Master and 18th-century French work sold in France (2024); default highlighted risks in high-value bids, but boosted Chardin's profile with Kimbell acquisition.
Similarities:
Both works exemplify Chardin's late style—effortless yet rigorous compositions of recurring motifs (e.g., fruits like peaches and plums, reflective glass)—elevating the mundane to the sublime. Their 2022–2024 sales underscore a "Chardin renaissance," driven by museum demand and the artist's underrepresentation in public collections relative to peers like Watteau. Provenance from elite French dynasties (Marcille/Rothschild) adds luster, and both were marketed as "rediscovered" gems from private holdings.
Differences:
Panier de Fraises des Bois emphasizes minimalist geometry and bold color restraint, suiting its smaller scale and rectangular format for intimate contemplation. Le Melon Entamé, larger and oval, feels more expansive and sensual, with deeper atmospheric effects and a pendant history that amplifies its narrative weight. Auction-wise, Le Melon's higher hammer reflected greater scarcity (fewer major Chardins remain private) and hype post-Panier's sale, but its default introduced rare auction-house vulnerability—contrasting Panier's smooth institutional transfer. Ultimately, both now enrich U.S. museums (Kimbell holds both indirectly via sales), ensuring Chardin's legacy endures beyond borders.
Overview
Both Panier de Fraises des Bois (The Basket of Wild Strawberries, c. 1761) and Le Melon Entamé (The Cut Melon, 1760) are masterpieces of still-life painting by Jean-Siméon Chardin (1699–1779), the preeminent French artist of intimate domestic scenes and everyday objects. Created at the peak of his career, these oval and rectangular compositions respectively showcase Chardin's mastery of light, texture, and subtle color harmonies, evoking a sense of quiet poetry and suspended time. They were both exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1761--Le Melon Entamé as a pendant to Le Bocal d’Abricots (now in the Art Gallery of Ontario), and Panier de Fraises des Bois independently—and share a provenance tied to the renowned Marcille collection, which amassed over 4,500 works by 18th-century French masters. These paintings highlight Chardin's influence from 17th-century Dutch still lifes, rendered with impasto techniques and soft, diffused lighting that imbues humble fruits and vessels with almost tactile presence.
Their auction histories reflect surging institutional interest in Chardin, with both setting records for the artist and 18th-century French Old Masters, though Le Melon Entamé's path was complicated by post-sale drama.
Date and Exhibition
Panier : c. 1761; exhibited at Salon of 1761 (catalogue no. 46).
Melon : 1760, signed and dated 'Chardin 1760'; exhibited at Salon of 1761 (with pendant Le Bocal d’Abricots).
Medium and DimensionsO
Panier : Oil on canvas; 38 x 46 cm (rectangular).
Melon : Oil on canvas; 57 x 51.5 cm (oval format, echoing the melon's shape).
Subject and Composition
Panier : A pyramidal basket of wild strawberries on a stone ledge, flanked by a glass of white wine, cherries, peaches, and two white carnations; simple geometric balance in white, red, and soft neutrals, with a diagonal flourish from the flowers for modern abstraction.
Melon : A sliced melon on a table, accompanied by greengage plums, peaches in a basket, two corked liqueur bottles, pears, and a flower-decorated ceramic pitcher; dynamic yet poised oval arrangement, with nuanced light creating buoyancy and volume amid rich greens, golds, and translucent flesh.
Artistic Significance
Panier : Iconic for its "extreme simplicity" and "audacious execution," blending silence and meditation; comparable to Panier de Prunes (Louvre) for its pyramidal form and peak-period assurance. Critics praise its "frank white-and-red accord" as unforgettable and proto-modern.
Melon : Monumental in scale and preservation; a "pure pictorial poetry" encapsulating Chardin's late genius in glazing, atmosphere, and half-light; invites tactile engagement with objects' weight and luster. One of his largest still lifes, rivaling Raymure à la Serviette for enveloping mellow light.
Provenance Highlights
Panier : Marcille collection (from 1862); remained in family until 2022; rediscovered in 19th century after obscurity.
Melon : Marcille collection (post-1876 sale); acquired by Baroness Nathaniel de Rothschild; descended through Rothschild heirs until 2024.
Auction Details
Panier : Artcurial, Paris, March 23, 2022, lot 15 (Maître Matthieu Fournier, with expert Éric Turquin).
Melon : Christie's, Paris, June 12, 2024, lot 5 (auctioneer Camille de Foresta).
Buyer and Outcome
Panier : New York dealer Adam Williams (on behalf of Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth); resold privately to Louvre in February 2024 for undisclosed sum (preempted export).
Melon : Italian investor Nanni Bassani Antivari; sale cancelled due to buyer's default (no payment); Christie's pursued legal action; repurchased by Rothschild heirs and sold privately to Kimbell Art Museum in 2025.
Market Impact
Panier : Set artist's record (until 2024); sparked French export debate and Louvre acquisition, affirming Chardin's rising status.
Melon : Surpassed prior record; most expensive Old Master and 18th-century French work sold in France (2024); default highlighted risks in high-value bids, but boosted Chardin's profile with Kimbell acquisition.
Similarities:
Both works exemplify Chardin's late style—effortless yet rigorous compositions of recurring motifs (e.g., fruits like peaches and plums, reflective glass)—elevating the mundane to the sublime. Their 2022–2024 sales underscore a "Chardin renaissance," driven by museum demand and the artist's underrepresentation in public collections relative to peers like Watteau. Provenance from elite French dynasties (Marcille/Rothschild) adds luster, and both were marketed as "rediscovered" gems from private holdings.
Differences:
Panier de Fraises des Bois emphasizes minimalist geometry and bold color restraint, suiting its smaller scale and rectangular format for intimate contemplation. Le Melon Entamé, larger and oval, feels more expansive and sensual, with deeper atmospheric effects and a pendant history that amplifies its narrative weight. Auction-wise, Le Melon's higher hammer reflected greater scarcity (fewer major Chardins remain private) and hype post-Panier's sale, but its default introduced rare auction-house vulnerability—contrasting Panier's smooth institutional transfer. Ultimately, both now enrich U.S. museums (Kimbell holds both indirectly via sales), ensuring Chardin's legacy endures beyond borders.
