Bosschaert

Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder (1573 – 1621) was a still life painter of the Dutch Golden Age.

His bouquets were painted symmetrically and with scientific accuracy in small dimensions and normally on copper. They sometimes included symbolic and religious meanings. Bosschaert became one of the first artists to specialize in still life painting, and he started a tradition of painting detailed flower bouquets, which typically included tulips and roses. Thanks to the booming seventeenth-century Dutch art market, he became highly successful, as the inscription on one of his paintings attests.

It may not be a coincidence that this trend coincided with a national obsession with exotic flowers which made flower portraits highly sought after.

Periods: Baroque, Dutch Golden Age.