Parrot tulips, irises, roses and other flowers in a glass vase, on a stone ledge, with butterflies, a caterpillar and a dragonfly

An accomplished painter and draughtsman, Jan van Kessel was taught by both Simon de Vos and his uncle Jan Brueghel II. He was registered as a blomschilder at the age of 18 and became a member of the Guild of Saint Luke in 1645.

This elegant still life is typical of the artist’s refined and meticulously observed flower paintings. Technical virtuosity, combined with advances in the microscope, allowed van Kessel to view and record minute details in a manner verging on hyper-realistic. His fascination with butterflies and insects, which is most conspicuous in his insect arrangements of the 1650s and 1660s, is evident here in his careful observation of a caterpillar, a dragonfly and two different species of butterfly.

We are grateful to Fred Meijer of the RKD, The Hague, for confirming the attribution on the basis of a photograph.