Flowers in an Urn

Jan van Huysum dated this still life to 1720. Its early provenance includes the Jacques Goudstikker collection in Amsterdam by 1919–1920 and a dealer named Vas Diag before 1924. The Leggatt Brothers, London, then owned the painting; they sold it to Lord Claud Hamilton on 21 July 1924.

After Lord Hamilton’s death, the work passed to his widow, who consigned it for sale at Christie’s, London, on 28 November 1975 (lot 23). From the Alexander Gallery, London, the National Gallery of Art, Washington, purchased it on 18 February 1977. No commission is recorded; the work is an independent still life.

The painting is in the collection of the National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington, D.C. It was acquired by the NGA on 18 February 1977. No inventory or accession number is provided in the available sources, and no exhibition history is recorded.

Jan van Huysum's Flowers in an Urn, an oil on panel from the early 1720s, exemplifies a pivotal moment in the artist's career. This painting showcases his transition from the darker compositions of his early training to the lighter, more decorative approach that would define his mature style. The work features an elaborate floral arrangement, meticulously rendered with a focus on naturalistic detail, reflecting the technical skill that made him a prominent still-life painter in eighteenth-century Europe.

This painting marks Van Huysum's departure from the dark backgrounds characteristic of his early work, embracing instead a luminous, pale greenish-ocher tonality. His meticulous technique is evident in the precise depiction of dewdrops, insects on petals, and the varied textures of the flowers. Infrared analysis reveals an underlying pilaster and visible pentimenti around the poppies, indicating a dynamic compositional process and careful revisions during its creation.