The elegance and austerity of the Spanish still life has been fundamental to elevate the genre of flower still lifes to a discipline of its own, within the art of painting. The beauty of nature has always been a source of inspiration for artists, which we can see captured, exquisitely, in works that capture the ephemeral life of flowers.
BARTOLOMÉ PÉREZ DE LA DEHESA (Madrid, ca. 1634-1698).
“Floreros”.
In addition to their beauty, the botanical context offered by this discipline helps us to understand the common flowers during the Baroque and the aesthetic taste of the time. And there is a symbolism around this genre, in which each flower can acquire a specific meaning, for example, a lily or lily allude to purity, the poppy to the transience of time, and the tulip to luxury and wealth. We also find compositions, which refer to specific times of the year, being common groupings, according to their season. A beautiful example of the treasures that nature offers from spring to winter.
Attributed to Margarita Caffi, “Floreros”. Lot 22 (35353923) Lot 4 (35353928)
In this sense, through still lifes of flowers we also observe the fascination, since the Renaissance, for the discoveries of the New World. The commercial colonies of the East were an incredible source of novel elements, including plants. Thus, the European passion for collecting also encouraged the export of foreign species, a trend that was visible in the transformation of royal gardens, where plants never seen before arrived, such as camellias and peonies, originally from China. In the same way, floral references were also integrated into the world of art, through still lifes, which became floral portraits, representing progress, luxury and scientific passion. In short, further proof of mankind’s will to dominate nature, in the case of still lifes, preserving it for eternity on canvas.
Attributed to Astolfo Petrazzi, “Three little lovebirds arranging a floral center”.
And in the auction of December 19, Setdart presents an interesting selection of still lifes on the theme of flowers. In particular, the pairs of the baroque masters Bartolomé Pérez de la Dehesa and the painter Margherita Caffi stand out. In both compositions, we observe exuberant bunches of flowers overflowing the vases that contain them. The neutral and dark backgrounds act as a backdrop for the flowers to show their colors, with absolute prominence.
Also noteworthy are these two paintings in which flowers maintain the protagonism, incorporating children in the attitude of classic putti . In this composition the infants interact with garlands of flowers, as if it were a game, while decorating a triumph.
