Rachel ruysch flower still life. Family portrait with flower still life in the making 1716 flowers by rachel ruysch and portraits by her husband juriaen pool. Beneath lavish gorgeously decadent flower and fruit displays lie the darker side of nature as petals decay and reptilian insects emerge from the shadows into the glistening light threatening to devour them. Rachel ruysch 1664 1750 the greatest of all female dutch realist artists rachel ruysch specialised in flowers pictures and still life painting in the tradition of other women artists of the dutch golden age such as judith leyster 1609 60 maria van oosterwijk 1630 93 and maria sybille merian 1647.
Ruyschs maternal grandfather was the architect pieter post. A student of artist willem van aelst she mastered the genre of still life specializing in flower paintingsher command of technique her sense of composition and her use of colors added a compelling vibrancy to her still life paintings. Held at stadtmuseum dusseldorf.
Flower still life depicts a lush variety of different flowers from popular common european blooms to rare overseas species. Rachel ruyschs intricate exquisitely detailed paintings are hidden worlds of wonder and discovery. By rachel ruysch one of the best still life painters.
Ruyschs family had a particular connection with. Dutch painter rachel ruysch 16641750 is regarded by many as the best female dutch artist of the 17th and 18th centuries. The following is a list of works by rachel ruysch that are generally accepted as autograph by the netherlands institute for art history and other sources.
Rachel ruysch dutch painter who specialized in richly detailed still life paintings that commanded high prices. Frederik ruysch encouraged his daughter. Rachel ruysch still life with flowers in a glass vase 1716 oil on canvas 485 x 395 cm rijksmuseum amsterdam.
Rachel ruysch the hague 3 june 1664 amsterdam 12 october 1750 was a still life painter from the northern netherlandsshe specialized in flowers inventing her own style and achieving international fame in her lifetime. Due to a long and successful career that spanned over six decades she became the best documented woman painter of the dutch golden age being followed by jan van huysum.