Art of theDay!

c. 1628; Pen and watercolor, 291 x 399 mm; British Museum, London

Ast, Balthasar van der (b. 1593-94, Middelburg; d. 1657, Delft). Dutch still-life painter, the brother-in-law of Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder, with whom he trained in Middelburg. He worked in Utrecht before settling in Delft in 1632. His touch was less exquisite that Bosschaert's, but his range was wider, his paintings often including fruit and shells as well as flowers. Jan Davidsz de Heem was his pupil in Utrecht.

Balthasar van der Ast was born in Middelburg, The Netherlands. Although the date of his birth is not recorded, legal action by his acting guardian and brother, Jacob, on 30 June 1618 and on 13 September 1619 indicates that Balthasar turned twenty-five (his maturity) around this time. Thus he was probably born between 1593 and 1594. He was orphaned when his father Hans, a wealthy widower, died in 1609. After his father's death he may have lived with his older sister Maria and her husband, the still-life painter Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder (1573-1621). Van der Ast's paintings show the impact of Bosschaert's art, which he could have seen in his brother-in-law's studio. Van der Ast, his brother-in-law and three nephews have become known as the Bosschaert dynasty, a group of painters famous for their still-lifes. He seems to have accompanied Bosschaert when the couple moved from Middelburg to Bergen op Zoom in 1615, and a few years later to Utrecht.

In 1619 Van der Ast joined the Saint Luke's Guild in Utrecht. While there he probably trained Bosschaert's three sons after their father had died in 1621. He also taught Jan Davidsz. de Heem. In 1632 he moved to Delft and joined that city's Saint Luke's Guild. He and his wife, Margrieta Jans van Burn, whom he married in 1633, had two daughters, Maria and Helena. Van der Ast died in Delft in December 1657 and was buried in the Oude Kerk there.

Van der Ast specialised in still lifes of flowers and fruit, as well as painting a number of remarkable shell still lifes. He worked together with Roelant Savery and taught Jan Davidsz. de Heem and the sons of Ambrosius Bosschaert.

Bosschaert's type of flower piece remained popular until after the middle of the 17th century. His most interesting follower is his brother-in-law Balthasar van der Ast who manages to avoid the hard, metallic quality of so many others influenced by Bosschaert. Van der Ast's paintings are more varied than Bosschaert's, and they frequently include lively lizards and toads. His particular speciality is the still-life composed exclusively of shells.

1835; Oil on canvas, 91.4 x 122.2 cm; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Turner, John Mallord William (1775-1851). One of the finest landscape artists was J.M.W. Turner, whose work was exhibited when he was still a teenager. His entire life was devoted to his art. Unlike many artists of his era, he was successful throughout his career.

Joseph Mallord William Turner was born in London, England, on April 23, 1775. His father was a barber. His mother died when he was very young. The boy received little schooling. His father taught him how to read, but this was the extent of his education except for the study of art. By the age of 13 he was making drawings at home and exhibiting them in his father's shop window for sale.

Turner was 15 years old when he received a rare honor--one of his paintings was exhibited at the Royal Academy. By the time he was 18 he had his own studio. Before he was 20 print sellers were eagerly buying his drawings for reproduction.

He quickly achieved a fine reputation and was elected an associate of the Royal Academy. In 1802, when he was only 27, Turner became a full member. He then began traveling widely in Europe.

Venice was the inspiration of some of Turner's finest work. Wherever he visited he studied the effects of sea and sky in every kind of weather. His early training had been as a topographic draftsman. With the years, however, he developed a painting technique all his own. Instead of merely recording factually what he saw, Turner translated scenes into a light-filled expression of his own romantic feelings.

As he grew older Turner became an eccentric. Except for his father, with whom he lived for 30 years, he had no close friends. He allowed no one to watch him while he painted. He gave up attending the meetings of the academy. None of his acquaintances saw him for months at a time. Turner continued to travel but always alone. He still held exhibitions, but he usually refused to sell his paintings. When he was persuaded to sell one, he was dejected for days.

In 1850 he exhibited for the last time. One day Turner disappeared from his house. His housekeeper, after a search of many months, found him hiding in a house in Chelsea. He had been ill for a long time. He died the following day--Dec. 19, 1851.

Turner left a large fortune that he hoped would be used to support what he called "decaying artists." His collection of paintings was bequeathed to his country. At his request he was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral.

Although known for his oils, Turner is regarded as one of the founders of English watercolor landscape painting. Some of his most famous works are Calais Pier, Dido Building Carthage, Rain, Steam and Speed, Burial at Sea, and The Grand Canal, Venice.

1881 (130 Kb); Oil on canvas, 155 x 192.5 cm (5' 1" x 6' 3 3/4"); Musee d'Orsay, Paris

Puvis de Chavannes, Pierre (1824-98). The foremost French mural painter of the second half of the 19th century.

He decorated many public buildings in France (for example, the Panthéon, the Sorbonne, and the Hôtel de Ville, all in Paris) and also Boston Public Library. His paintings were done on canvas and then affixed to the walls (marouflage), but their pale colors imitated the effect of fresco. He had only modest success early in his career (when a private income enabled him to work for little payment), but he went on to achieve an enormous reputation, and he was universally respected even by artists of very different aims and outlook from his own. Gauguin, Seurat, and Toulouse-Lautrec were among his professed admirers. His reputation has since declined, his idealized depictions of antiquity or allegorical representations of abstract themes now often seeming rather anaemic. He remains important, however, because of his influence on younger artists.

His simplified forms, respect for the flatness of the picture surface, rhythmic line, and use of non-naturalistic color to evoke the mood of the painting appealed to both the Post-Impressionists and the Symbolists.

"Flowers in red and pink"

La Chevalier del mornac 1873