Flowers in a Basket

Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer’s earliest works were history paintings but he became a specialist in flower painting. His work typically consisted of elaborate arrangements of precisely painted flowers in vases, urns, or baskets, often with bunches of grapes or other fruits, and arranged in front of draped fabrics or architectural fragments. As is evident in this example, the painter was especially conscious of the delicate color relationships among the various flowers, contrasting the vivid red and white of the large blooms with the surrounding harmonies of green.