Tag: female artists

Art history Spotlight: Exploring Rachel Ruysch: The Master of Floral Still Lifes

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I’m pretty sure you have seen her works somewhere, the blooming flowers painting with a brownish tone background. If you tried searching her name on any search engine, tons of flower paintings will show up – don’t be surprised, because she actually left a legacy of about 250 still life paintings.

Family background: A genius born in a supportive environment

Rachel Ruysch, born in Amsterdam, is the daughter of Antony Fredericus, Professor of Anatomy, and Maria, daughter of an architect Pieter Post. Her talent was discovered from early age and her father let her study under Willem van Aelst, a talented painter of flowers in Delft. She quickly surpassed her teacher, and her talent became known in the highest circles. She was invited to German Courts before she was of middle age. She became the first female artist to enter artist society in The Hague in 1701.

In her personal life: she got married with Juriaen Pool (1666-1745), an excellent painter of portraits and a colleague in the Court Paintership of the Elector Palatine in 1693. She must have a happy marriage with him, since they had ten kids together and she was fully supported by her husband to keep painting with her maiden name.

While we can’t deny her talent and hard work, it’s important to note that her success is powered by other males in a patriarchy: her father and her husband. Her father is a renowned scientist specializing in anatomy and botany, and also an amateur painter. His cabinet, a huge collection of anatomical collection, attracted visitors from all over Europe, including Tsar Peter the Great. His collection was one of the earliest fluid-preserved specimens, making he himself an interest subject to study from the point of view of a scientist as well. He himself was featured in painting by Jan van Neck. (Dam, n.d)

Van Neck, J. (1683). The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Frederik Ruysch [Oil on canvas].

As an artistic person, Frederick Ruysch added a touch of decorative to his preservation, making his specimens an art collection to an extent. He was obsessed with the concept of ‘vanitas’ – the transcience of life and death. ‘Vanitas’ – Latin for ‘vanity’, means pointlessness and futility of pleasure, ambition and all worldly desires (Dam, n.d). This topic is explored by artists during Baroque period, belonging to allegorical art (arts representing a higher ideal). Frederick probably passed on his interest to Rachel while she helped him with his collection; not to mention, she had access to the greatest library of reference for flowers, plants and insects. In addition, she has other family members interested in arts: her grandfather was an architect, his brother and uncle also drew and painted well.
Less is known about her husband, Juriaen Pool; however, his love and support for her can be seen in his painting of the family. He is a court painter, a portraitist and a printmaker.

Pool, J., & Ruysch, R. (1716). Family portrait with flower still life in the making [Painting].

The only version from online resources is monochrome, but it’s obvious on the left of the painting is a bouquet of flowers, a familiar subject in Rachel’s artworks. She was ‘in the spotlight’ of the painting, indicating his admiration for her. She also used her maiden name through her whole career and her husband was likely to support instead of eclipse her talent.

In 1750, the state honored Ruysch with the publication of Dichtlovers voor de uitmuntende schilderessen Mejufvrouwe Rachel Ruisch (‘Poems for the Excellent Painter Mistress Rachel Ruysch’) (The Art Story,n.d). This anthology, the first of its kind for a Dutch artist, featured poems by eleven contemporary poets and scholars who celebrated her life and work. Rachel Ruysch passed away later that year at the age of 85.

Analysis on her style: highly detailed and scientific based botanical painting

A still life with flowers, butterflies and a lizard in a dell: PD.87-1973
(The Fitzwilliam Museum, 2025). An early work.

One important detail is that the bouquets Rachel painted never existed, but an assortment of fruits, flowers and insects from the artist’s imagination. That showcases her adept understanding of nature, especially botany and anatomy of insects as well as compositional skills of arranging the details to attract the viewers. She put together flowers from different seasons as well as from overseas, which, somehow reflected the development of Dutch horticultural industry as well as international trade, not to mention the “Tulip Mania” – the first recorded economic bubbles (Smarthistory (n.d.) One more thing to notice is that she used asymmetrical composition, emphasizing the natural bloom and droop of the flower – this was an ‘informal’ choice compared to other contemporary painters.

Her process often started with main lines of a composition, then she rendered details with the goal of being as true-to-life as possible. Different texture, from the soft silky petals to the rough leaves, were accurately painted. Arts writer Alexxa Gotthardt highlights that Ruysch “swiftly gained a reputation across Amsterdam for the enchanting realism of the plants and insects in her paintings. Her works weren’t merely idealized depictions but subtly alluded to themes of mortality and the life cycle.” (The Art Story,n.d)

In early works, she often painted woodland scenes “sottobosco” (forest floor), being inspired from Otto Marseus van Schrieck, Abraham Mignon, and her teacher, Willem van Aelst (The Art Story,n.d). A special technique she learned from her master, Willem van Aelst, was imprinting. She sometimes used real moss and real butterfly wings as imprints in her early painting. The scenes were often dramatically lit – one feature that stayed consistent in all her paintings. Later, her style reflected more of Baroque art style – a movement against Mannerist style, an intricate and formulaic approach. She often painted a bouquet, depicting flowers at various stages of life, capturing their journey from vibrant bloom to graceful decay. They were paired with a wide range of insects and animals – she created an ecosystem in her painting.

A vase of flowers (The Fitzwilliam Museum, 2025)

As she grew older, her compositions feature more open, expansive arrangements that fill the frame, evoking a rich sense of atmosphere and subtle humidity. She used bold diagonals and fluid curves to guide the viewer’s eye effortlessly across the composition. The central group of flowers were often the lightest and brightest, insects were arranged unexpectedly evoking a sense of curiosity in viewers.

Her paintings were often termed with ‘vanitas’ or ‘memento mori’ (Latin for ‘remember you must die’) since it was her father’s obsession. It’s a popular genre in Dutch during the seventeenth century, using still-life form to provoke thoughts about the fleeting life (Hibbitt, 2020). It’s the most common idea associated with her flowers painting, that all beauty fades and that all life, in the end, must die while celebrating the beauty of nature. Her painting may serve as a moral value to live thoughfully, prioritizing what truly matters over transient worldly matters.

References

Dam, A. (n.d). Death re-enlightened: Conservation of Frederik Ruysch’s wet anatomical preparations—The Rembrandts of fluid-preserved specimens [PDF]. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376812311

Hibbitt, F. (2020, July 14). Vanitas: Dutch master paintings explained. The Collector. https://www.thecollector.com/vanitas-dutch-master-paintings/

Huygens ING. (n.d.). Rachel Ruysch. Vrouwenlexicon. Retrieved January 6, 2025, from https://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/vrouwenlexicon/lemmata/data/Ruysch,%20Rachel/en

Pinakothek Museums (n.d.). Real or not? Rachel Ruysch and her butterflies. Retrieved January 6, 2025, from https://www.pinakothek.de/en/blog/real-or-not-rachel-ruysch-and-her-butterflies

The Fitzwilliam Museum. (2025). A still life with flowers, butterflies and a lizard in a dell [Web page]. https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/1906

The Art Story. (n.d.). Rachel Ruysch: Legacy. The Art Story. Retrieved January 8, 2025, from https://www.theartstory.org/artist/ruysch-rachel/

Smarthistory. (n.d.). Rachel Ruysch, Flower still-life. Retrieved January 6, 2025, from https://smarthistory.org/ruysch-flower-still-life/

Art history Spotlight: Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun

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I first knew about Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun from a video by National Gallery. My first impression is that this women is a bold yet feminine painter. She rose from a modest background, and painted without academic training or public acknowledgement and became a kind of ‘celebrity’ artist. To me, she is a true feminist: she never stopped embracing her tender, maternal character in her painting; yet in real life, she fought in her own way to be able to do the things she loved.

Élisabeth Louise Vigée-LeBrun, Self-Portrait, 1790, oil on canvas, 100 x 81 cm
(Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence)

She wrote about her youth in her autobiography and her love for arts started from when she was a schoolgirl. Her father had always seen something in her and let her play with his crayon pastels all days. She never admitted she was gifted to be painter, but declared “what an inborn passion for the art I possessed. Nor has that passion ever diminished; it seems to me that it has even gone on growing with time, for to-day I feel under the spell of it as much as ever, and shall, I hope, until the hour of death.” (1)

This passion never left her for all her life. She painted portraits professionally from early teens without a license from the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture (Academie for short). This was not a surprise, considering the  Académie’s position of monopoly on the art market. A female artist wasn’t allowed to attend figures classes with naked models. Élisabeth wasn’t trained formally, mostly self-taught and guided by mentors who were friends of her father: Hubert Robert, Joseph Vernet, etc.

She rose to be the favorite court painter of Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, wife of Louis XVIII. The queen, with the king, intervened to help Élisabeth get a license. She developed a friendship with the queen, which was unusual considering their classes. In her memoir, Élisabeth shared about the kindness she was given by the queen and their mutual interest in music. (1) The life of the two women paralleled and contrasted in a curious way, pairing with the fluctuations of French politics.

She was friends and acquaintances with many aristocrats, and she became a salonnière, simply explained, she hosted social gatherings for people to talk about arts, literature, history, politics, etc. Salons were mainly hosted by women, namely Madame de Tencin, Madame du Deffand (friend of Voltaire), Madame Necker (wife of Louis XVI’s director of finances). Still, Élisabeth painted furiously at day and hosted sessions of poetry readings or musical recitals at night. She never wanted to be known as a salonnière, the point of opening a salon was to support her passion and her husband’s career as an arts dealer.

She reached her peak from 1783 till 1789, after she received official admission from the Academie. In 1783, she also finished the painting known as “Marie-Antoinette en gaulle”, in which she depicted the queen in a close and intimate point of view. Élisabeth wanted to represent the queen not just as a queen but a women “in all her appealing and vulnerable femininity”. (2) In  1783, 1785, 1787, and 1789 Salons, she achieved great success with her portraits of royal members and her own family. In total, she submitted more than fifty pictures. (3)

Marie-Antoinette en gaulle (1783)
(Luxembourg Museum, Paris) 

These glamourous days ended in 1789, the outbreak of French evolution. Her most important patron and friend, Marie Antoinette was executed in 1793. Élisabeth fled to Rome, Italy and then Saint Petersburg, Russia. She was patronized by royal members and kept painting them to support herself and her daughter, Julie. Her financial situation was bad despite her success. The money she earned in her teen years was used up by her step father, and the money she earn after marriage was used up by her husband (2). She returned to Paris in 1802, officially separated from Le Brun in 1805, and he passed away in 1813.

She continued to paint until the day she died in 1842, as she hoped in her youth. In 1835, Vigée Le Brun published her memoirs titled “Souvenirs,” which told the story of her life from very early days until the last moment.

What’s admirable about Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun is her hard-working and brave attitude to stick to her passion. She is the true definition of “pursuing passion” and her love for arts became what kept her alive in difficult times. She was a protégée, but as a women, she had to overcome many more obstacles just to be recognized. Her hard-working attitude shines from her memoir.

She experienced ups and downs in both her social and private life. She became the most sought for-female portraitist in Paris, yet she was forced to get married and didn’t have a happy personal life. She lived a long life (she passed away at 86 years old) and her admirers surrounded her till the end, yet she suffered the loss of her only daughter, her close brother, her friends. She witnessed the monarchy reaching its peaks and collapsing to dust. Her portraits, her memoir are now evidences of a remarkable era of French history.

Her memoir is available for free on Project Gutenberg .

(1) Vigée-Lebrun, Louise-Élisabeth. Memoirs of Madame Vigée Lebrun. Translated by Lionel Strachey. New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1903.

(2) May, Gita. The Odyssey of an Artist in an Age of Revolution. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.

(3) “The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (1755–1842).” Metropolitan Museum of Art, accessed July 10, 2024. URL: https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/vgee/hd_vgee.htm.