Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer (Lille 1636-1699 London) A hydrangea, chrysanthemum, tulip and other flowers in a sculpted vase. Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2014

oil on canvas, 26¼ x 20¼ in. (66.6 x 51.4 cm.). Estimate $30,000 – $50,000

Provenance: with Galerie Cailleux, Paris, 1969, where acquired by the family of the present owner.
PROPERTY FROM A NEW YORK COLLECTION

Literature: M. Faré, La nature morte en France: Le XVIIe siècle, Paris, 1974, p. 298. 

Notes: Painter of flower-pieces for Louis XIV, Monnoyer was a key figure in the evolution of 17th-century French still life painting. Spare, restrained works by artists such as Louise Moillon and Lubin Baugin dominated around 1630, while later in the century Monnoyer and his peers transformed the genre with colorful, bold and energetic flower pictures exemplified by the present work. Depicted in this attractive painting is a dynamic bouquet of flowers, varied in shape and size, presented against an unadorned gray background. The closely cropped composition and profusion of rich color create an effect of lush abundance. The flowers are gathered in a gold-orange vase decorated with a classicizing relief depicting a satyr and bearded man with a knife, a motif that recalls the work of Monnoyer's contemporary, the German-born Abraham Mignon (1640-1679).

Monnoyer's connection to Dutch and Flemish still-life paintings was strong, as he initially studied history painting in Antwerp, where he would have encountered the works of influential Flemish flower painters such as Jan Breughel I (1568-1625) progenitor of the profuse flower bouquet in a vase on a shelf (see Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, inv. GG_548). By 1650, Monnoyer was residing in Paris, where he participated in prestigious decorative schemes, working with Charles Le Brun at Versailles and other royal residences such as the Louvre and Marly, among others. Louis XIV must have been a particular devotee of Monnoyer, as he owned approximately 60 works by the artist. In 1663, Monnoyer was presented to the Académie Royale and chose to send four still-life paintings to his first Salon in 1673. In 1690, Monnoyer departed for England at the request of Ralph Montagu and there won immediate acclaim, painting flower still-lifes to adorn the homes of the aristocracy, including Boughton, Montagu House, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court, and Kensington Palace.

Christie's. OLD MASTER PAINTINGS, 4 June 2014, New York, Rockefeller Plaza. http://www.christies.com/