Kadriorg Art Museum in Tallinn opened “Garden of Delights: The Seventeenth Century in Bloom” on August 30, offering a sweeping look at layered Dutch and Flemish floral art.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, flowers in art signified far more than decoration. They held a central place across genres, from grand altarpieces to intimate portrait miniatures. Behind the blooms lay stories of exploration, global trade, power struggles, moral choices and religious beliefs.
The show features bouquets by Flemish and Dutch masters including Jan Brueghel the Elder, Clara Peeters, Anna Maria Janssens, Jan Davidsz. de Heem and David Teniers the Younger.
The project is the result of years of technical and art-historical research at the Phoebus Foundation’s conservation studio, led by studio director Sven Van Dorst.
“Scans revealed that Daniel Seghers began his bouquets with almost abstract colored bulbs, layering them into roses and lilies,” Van Dorst said.
“The technical analysis literally allowed us to peek over the painter’s shoulder,” he continued. “It led to surprising finds: under a portrait of a deceased child, we uncovered an entire hidden bouquet, and another still life contained real butterfly wings pressed into the paint.”
With nearly 300 works on display, the exhibition “Garden of Delights: The Seventeenth Century in Bloom” runs at Kadriorg Art Museum in Tallinn through Sunday, January 25.
With nearly 300 works on display, the exhibition “Garden of Delights: The Seventeenth Century in Bloom” runs at Kadriorg Art Museum in Tallinn through Sunday, January 25.
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