Artwork Page for Flowers in a Vase

Details / Information for Flowers in a Vase

Flowers in a Vase

c. 1669

Simon Verelst

(Dutch, 1644–1721)
Culture
Netherlands
Medium
oil on wood
Measurements
Framed: 41 x 37 x 5 cm (16 1/8 x 14 9/16 x 1 15/16 in.); Unframed: 26.4 x 22.6 cm (10 3/8 x 8 7/8 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Noah L. Butkin 1982.246
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Description

With just a few flowers, Verelst created a composition of great sophistication and balance. A simple glass flask is filled with a large rose, a red anemone, and a white narcissus tinged with pink. These flowers are surrounded by a scattering of smaller blossoms. Like many still-life painters, Verelst depicted a window reflected in the glass vase, but here he did not show the window's precise structure. He did, however, use another common device: the depiction of a few chips in the stone surface to make the material seem more tangible. Early in his career, Verelst moved from Holland to London, where he worked for the court of King James II and was extravagantly praised for the realism of his flower paintings.
A vertical oil painting depicts a bulbous glass vase on a stone ledge, holding a floral arrangement against a dark backdrop. A large pink rose with layered petals dominates our left. Above it, a red tulip stands tall, while a white flower with a ruffled center blooms on our right. Sprigs of blue and white flowers trail downward, with orange blossoms clustering nearby. Light from our left creates sharp highlights across the petals.

Flowers in a Vase

c. 1669

Simon Verelst

(Dutch, 1644–1721)
Netherlands

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