1606 -1683/1684 · Utrecht, Leiden and Antwerp

Bright flowers, ripe fruits, glassware, shells and precious tableware make Jan Davidsz de Heem one of the absolute masters of sumptuous still life in the 17th century.

Jan Davidsz de Heem was born in Utrecht in 1606 into a Catholic family. His first works, perhaps nourished by the example of Balthasar van der Ast, still favor modest objects and a restrained palette. Installed in Leiden in 1626, he painted tonal vanities: books, musical instruments, skulls and hourglasses recall the fragility of knowledge and time. His arrival in Antwerp in 1635 profoundly transformed his art. There he discovered the colorful richness of Flemish still life, notably the inventions of Daniel Seghers, and soon brought together the traditions of the North and the South. His arrival in Antwerp in 1635 profoundly transformed his art. He discovered the colorful richness of Flemish still life, notably the inventions of Daniel Seghers, and soon brought together the traditions of the North and the South. His arrival in Antwerp in 1635 profoundly transformed his art. There he discovered the colorful richness of Flemish still life, notably the inventions of Daniel Seghers, and soon brought together the traditions of the North and the South. His banquet tables combined lobster, oysters, fruits, goldsmithing, transparent glasses, carpets and shells in compositions that are both lush and rigorously ordered. Fruits and rich tableware on a table show how a lemon peel, a cluster or a metallic reflection can guide the eye. Still life with lobster and nautilus opposes shell, pearly shell and precious materials; Vase of flowers brings together species from different seasons in an imaginary bouquet made plausible by observation. Luxury never erases meditation: opened fruit, fragile glass, insect and faded flower remind us that all abundance is fleeting. De Heem then alternates stays in Utrecht and Antwerp, returning to the latter city after the French invasion of 1672 and died there in 1683 or 1684. Admired for his ability to paint gold and silver with illusionist truth, he directed a sought-after workshop and trained numerous followers, including Abraham Mignon. His production makes still life a theater where matter, light, desire and time respond to each other. The "Jan Davidsz de Heem" selection notably compares Fruits and rich tableware on a table and Still life: banquet scene. His reading favors color.

De Heem paints abundance on the verge of its disappearance: the fruit shines, the glass trembles and each flower reminds us that beauty is an instant.