Lot 957 | Flower Still Life with Girl with Flower Basket

YKENS, PIETER
Antwerp 1648 - 1695
VERBRUGGEN II, GASPAR PEETER
Antwerp 1664 - 1730
and workshop

Title: Flower Still Life with Girl with Flower Basket.
The painting was created in collaboration with Gaspar Peeter Verbruggen II ( Antwerp 1664 - 1730).
Technique: Oil on canvas.
Mounting: Relined.
Measurement: 114 x 167cm.
Frame/Pedestal: Framed.

Provenance:
Private ownership, Italy.

The flourishing society of the 17th century in Flanders, as in the Netherlands, had a strong demand for works of art and paintings, which in turn led to a great interest in the painting profession. More and more, a specialisation within the painting profession developed. From the masses, the individual could thus excel in his or her subject. Co-operations of such specialists were sought after if work was to be done at the highest level in all areas.
The present painting from the last quarter of the 17th century is an example of such congenial cooperation. The lush fruit and flower arrangements are made by the hand and from the workshop of the younger Gaspar Peeter Verbruggen, who, like his father, was a master of botanical still lifes. Trained by his father, Verbruggen Jr. is said to have been accepted as a master by the Lucas Guild of Antwerp at the age of 13. And like his father, he worked several times with the figure painter Pieter Ykens, who also comes into question as the painter of this woman "in the prime of her youth". In the past, the breast of the "Flora" had been modestly covered up; a restoration brought the present, original condition to light.

We are grateful to Fred G. Meijer, Amsterdam, for suggesting the attribution of the present painting on the basis of a high-resolution digital photograph.