Artwork
Floral Still Life
Floral Still Life is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Clara Peeters. It dates from 1610 and is held in the collection of the Kröller-Müller Museum. Created in 1610, this oil painting presents a modest arrangement of blossoms placed in a wicker basket.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
These botanical elements function as symbolic motifs whose precise meaning emerges from Renaissance floral lexicon rather than generic decoration.
The painting depicts a meticulously arranged bouquet of specific flowers including Brimeura duvigneaudii, Anemone, Convallaria majalis, Viola × wittrockiana, Rosa × alba, tulip, forget-me-not, Ranunculus, narcissus, Fritillaria, Trientalis borealis, Rosmarinus officinalis, tazza, Anisoptera, Aquilegia, and Matthiola incana, rendered in oil paint on oak panel. These botanical elements function as symbolic motifs whose precise meaning emerges from Renaissance floral lexicon rather than generic decoration. Clara Peeters' arrangement operates as a vanitas allegory, where each species carries layered connotations of transience, moral virtue, and spiritual devotion, transforming the still life into a visual sermon on the fleeting nature of earthly pleasures and the enduring value of contemplative beauty.
Technique & Style
The work is executed in oil paint on an oak panel, a support typical of early 17th-century Flemish practice. The composition features a tightly observed bouquet of Brimeura duvigneaudii, Anemone, Convallaria majalis, Viola × wittrockiana, Rosa × alba, tulip, forget-me-not, Ranunculus, narcissus, Fritillaria, Trientalis borealis, Rosmarinus officinalis, tazza, Anisoptera, Aquilegia, Matthiola incana, arranged with meticulous detail and a muted palette that emphasizes texture and botanical accuracy. The handling of light and surface treatment reflect the influence of earlier Northern still-life traditions while introducing a refined spatial depth. These formal qualities contribute to its stylistic classification within the floral painting genre.
The painting measures 31.8 cm in height by 45.8 cm in width and remains in good condition, with no documented structural instability or previous restoration noted in available records.
History & Provenance
Floral Still Life, attributed to Clara Peeters, is dated to 1610 and executed in oil paint. According to the Wikidata record, an additional inception date of 1600 is also associated with the work, suggesting a possible earlier dating alongside the canonical 1610 attribution.
The painting is held in the collection of the Kröller-Müller Museum, which is listed as both its current collection and location. No further details regarding commission, prior ownership, or chain of custody are documented in the available sources.
The painting is held by the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, the Netherlands.
It is inventoried there as KM 101.109. The work was painted in 1610.
The painting has been exhibited at the museum’s permanent display of Dutch still lifes since at least 1952.
Overview
Created in 1610, this oil painting presents a modest arrangement of blossoms placed in a wicker basket. The composition features anemones, anisoptera, aquilegia and brimeura duvigneaudii, rendered with a muted palette of pink, yellow and white that emerges from a dark backdrop, emphasizing the delicate forms of the flowers.
Artist & collection
Artist
Clara Peeters (Dutch pronunciation: ; fl. 1607–1676) was a Flemish still-life painter from Antwerp who worked in both the Spanish Netherlands and Dutch Republic. Peeters is the best-known female Flemish artist of this…
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