Artwork
A Rose and Five Insects
A Rose and Five Insects is a watercolor painting by the Flemish Baroque painting artist Christoffel van den Berghe. It dates from 1618 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The vellum support contributes to a smooth, slightly reflective finish that enhances the vivid colour of the flower and the delicate wings of the insects.
The work titled A Rose and Five Insects is executed in watercolor on vellum, a thin animal skin prepared as a support, measuring 13 cm in height by 16.6 cm in width. The painting belongs to the still-life genre and depicts a rose together with a butterfly and several insects, rendered with fine brushwork that emphasizes the translucency of the pigment on the delicate surface. Its creation dates to 1618, placing it within the early Dutch still-life tradition where attention to botanical detail and the subtle handling of light are characteristic.
The vellum support contributes to a smooth, slightly reflective finish that enhances the vivid colour of the flower and the delicate wings of the insects.
History & Provenance
A Rose and Five Insects is a 1618 watercolor on vellum by Christoffel van den Berghe, depicting a rose together with five insects including a butterfly and a dragonfly. The work is classified as a still life and measures 13 cm by 16.6 cm. It is part of the Rijksmuseum collection in Amsterdam, where it remains in the museum's permanent holdings.
Overview
Christoffel van den Berghe, a painter active during the Dutch Golden Age, created A Rose and Five Insects in 1618. This painting, executed on vellum, reflects the Flemish Baroque style and showcases the artist's proficiency in still life compositions. Known for his landscapes and floral subjects, van den Berghe meticulously depicted a single rose surrounded by various insects. The artwork is presently held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on a single pink rose, rendered with soft petals and detailed green leaves. Around this central bloom, the artist has carefully placed several insects, including a yellow butterfly, a fuzzy black-and-yellow bee, and two dragonflies. A notable detail is the depiction of a caterpillar alongside what appears to be a dragonfly emerging from a shell-like form, subtly introducing themes of life cycles and transformation within the natural world.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Christoffel van den Berghe (he used the monogram CvB) (c. 1590, Antwerp – c. 1645, Middelburg) was a Flemish-born Dutch Golden Age painter of landscapes and flower still lifes.
Plate 22: A Cinnabar Moth and a Cockchafer with Butterflies, other Insects, and a Snapdragon
Plate 14: Common Brimstone, Painted Lady, and Clouded Yellow Butterflies
Plate 10: Brown Hairstreak, Silver-Washed Fritillary, and Clouded Yellow Butterflies on a Four-o'-Clock Flower
Plate 51: Grasshoppers and a Caterpillar with a Four O'Clock Flower
Convolvulus and Metamorphosis of the Convolvulus Hawk Moth
Plate 23: Hummingbird Hawk Moth, Butterflies, and Other Insects around a Snowberry Sprig
Dragon arum flower and tortoiseshell butterfly
