ALEXANDER COOSEMANS (1627-1689)

Still life with fruits on an entablature Oil on parquet panel. With certificate. Size : 37 x 51,5 cm Private collection, Ghent, Belgium. An Antwerp painter of still lifes of flowers, fruit and game, but also of Vanities, he became in 1641 the pupil of Davidszoon de Heem, the most famous Dutch painter of the time for still lifes. Master of the Guild of Saint Luke in 1645, he left shortly afterwards for Italy where he worked on commissions for the Palazzo Doria-Pamphili-Landi, on the one hand in Rome at the Palazzo Doria Pamphili, and on the other hand in Genoa at the Palazzo del Principe, also known as the "Villa di Andrea Doria. Coosemans returned to Antwerp in 1651 and remained there for the rest of his life. He painted much more varied still lifes than his master from Heem, preferring dramatic light effects in artificial settings. His stay in Italy greatly influenced his style.