Palette Museum

-> FIRST PART  : The Spanish Rose – Our first rose study comes from Francisco de Zurbarán, spanish painter (1598-1664). Zurbarán is know primaly for his religious paintings and for his still-lifes.

2 – We admired at the Museum of Fine Art of Cleveland the Zurbarán painting : “Christ and the Virgin in the House of Nazareth”, about 1640. An oil on canvas. We have to know that stories of Christ’s childhood and
adolescence became increasingly popular during the Counter-Reformation because they were easily understood by a broard public. Rather than taking a story from the Bible, Zurbarán appears to have invented this subject,
in which Jesus pricks himself on a crown of thorns he is weaving, foretelling his later torment at the Crucifixion.

3 – Despite the grand scale and monumental figures, the work has remarkable intimacy and quietness, emphasizing such details as the Virgin’s tears.

4 – The sacredness of the stage is marked by purity of form and color.

5 – Style roses of Zurbarán evokes the simplicity and purity. The bouquet on the right of the painting can be seen as an offering from the painter to the Virgin.

6 – Another rose of Francisco de Zurbarán from a still-life, the same simplicity.

7 – Francisco de Zurbarán still-life with his rose, as a signature of the painter.

8 – “The Immaculate Conception” by Francisco de Zurbarán, 1661 – Szépmûvészeti Museum, Budapest. Look closely at how the artist depicts the twelve
Stars of Mary. We perceive a very slight presence of the Entities that sit around the Virgin, in the Sky. Zurbarán reveals his talent as a painter visionary.

9 – Probable self-portrait of Francisco de Zurbarán, spanish painter as Saint Luke. Observe his palette and brushes in his left hand.
His right hand is placed on the heart, his eyes are turned upwards, toward the Light.

-> SECOND PART  : The Flemish Rose

10 – Second rose with Jan Philips Van Thielen, Flemish Master (1618-1667) : “Roses and Tulip in a Glass Vase”, oil on panel, c. 1650/1660.

11 – We have seen and admired this rose at tha National Gallery of Art, Washington DC. Here, we can see details of the Thielen Rose with the still-life.

-> THIRD PART  : The French Rococo Rose

12 – To study the third rose, we went to the french section of Cleveland Museum of Fine Art to admire a large painting of François Boucher, French painter (1703-1770) : “The Fountain of Venus”, 1756 – oil on canvas.
Lighthearted, erotic decorative schemes remained popular among the French aristocracy thoughout the 1700s. In this painting, part of the playfulness comes from the way Boucher painted some of the figures in gray,
as if made of stone, while the boundaries of painting and sculpture, as well as fiction and reality.

13 – The original purpose of this painting remains unclear. While it may have been exhibited as an independant work of art, it probably served initially as a preliminary design for a tapestry.

14 – Roses are made from a simple graphics. We can find this type of graphic in Aubusson Tapestry of 18th century.

-> PART FOUR  : The British Rose

15 – A rose painted by the British painter Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830). Portrait of Catherine Gray, Lady Manners, 1794 – Museum of Art, Cleveland. For history, Catherine Gray, Lady Manners, rejected his portrait representing
her as goddess Juno, symbolized here by the peacock. To make up for the loss of sale, Lawrence exhibited the painting at the Royal Academy in 1794 “to be disposed of”. It did not sell and remained in his collection until after
his death.

16 – Despite the rejection, the painting displays all the hallmarks of Lawrence’s flamboyat style, dazzling brushwork, and innovative use of color that helped secure his role as successor to Joshua Reynolds.

17 – It’s rare to see a rose painted by Lawrence. All of his work is mainly painted portraits. Rose holds a central place in the composition of this painting, symbol of ephemeral beauty ?

-> PART FIVE  : The Belgium Rose

18 – Le maître incontesté de la peinture florale en Belgique au XIXième siècle était le peintre réaliste Jean-Baptiste Robie (1821-1910). Il aimait particulièrement les roses au point qu’on l’appelait “l’amant des roses.”

19 – “Le bouquet de roses” de Jean-Baptiste Robie (1821-1910). Une atmosphère de douceur et de simplicité.

20 – Vers la fin de sa carrière, la rose de Jean Robie évolue sous l’influence de l’École Française avec l’arrivée des courants de l’Art Nouveau.

-> PART SIX  : The Austrian Rose

21 – The Austrian Rose Painter, Joseph Nigg (Vienna 1782 – Vienna 1863). From 1800 to 1843 Nigg worked as a flower painter for the Viennese porcelain factory. From 1835 this post also involved holding classes in painting at
the factory. A publication of 1818, marking the centenary of the founding of the factory, praised in particular Nigg’s ‘ability to work in the style of the masters of his speciality, such as Huysums, Ruysch, and others’. With the
advent of the Biedermeier Era, flower painting became immensely popular and was also to be found on large porcelain plaques. A piece of this sort, thirty inches in height, was presented by Nigg, on behalf of the Viennese
factory, at the London World Exhibition of 1851.

22 – Nigg was probably the most important porcelain painter then active in Vienna. His work constituted the simultaneous continuation and adaptation of Dutch floral still-life painting, which in Vienna had been taken up by
Waldmüller and others. These plaques are also among the most technically brilliant pieces of porcelain to be produced in Vienna. They were especially favoured as gifts in diplomatic circles and they found their way into the art
collections of the time. The fact that there was a special class for instruction in flower painting at the Viennese porcelain factory testifies to the importance that this genre assumed, especially in the Biedermeier Era.
Pupils seeking to practise this discipline had to draw from nature. Mastery was deemed to consist not only in perfecting the purely technical skills required to fire such large items, but also in achieving refinement in the nuances
of colour.

23 – Joseph Nigg study with a rose.

24 – Flower Arrangement with roses by joseph Nigg (Wien, Österreichische Galerie).

25 – Joseph Nigg Still Life with three roses in a glass.

-> PART SEVEN  : The German Rose

26 – Study of roses with the German Decorative Painter, Clara Krüger Von Sivers (1854-1924). Clara Von Sivers was born in Pinneberg in Northwest Germany in 1854. In a seemingly endless quest for the perfect technique
there are records of her studying in Copenhagen, Paris, Lyon, Stuttgart and Dresden.

27 – Clara Von Sivers specialised in still life painting and her work can be seen in the public Museum of Chemnitz in East Germany.

28 – We can see, here, influence from the French School of Roses paintings, in the beginning of the period of Art Nouveau.

29 – Clara Von Sivers signature, Krüger sometimes with, sometimes without.

30 – A wonderful Paravent painted with roses by Clara Von Sivers.

31 – Some works of Clara Von Sivers, so difficult to find today.

32 – A wonderful Clara von Sivers Still Life, not with roses but so beautiful, we can admire this German Master of Decorative Painting.

-> PART EIGHT  : The Danish Rose

33 – Discover the Danish rose with Otto Didrik Ottesen (1816-1892), a floral and fruits still life painter, born in Broager and dead in Copenhagen.

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41 – The Danish Still Life of Ottesen with French and Dutch influences in style roses.

-> PART NINE  : The Russian Rose

42 – Discovery of a Russian Rose with Mikhael Aleksandrovich Vrubel (1856-1910), a famous painter of the Symbolist movement. We can see here “Roses and Orchids” painted in 1894.

43 – Second composition : “Yellow Roses” painted in 1894.

-> PART TEN  : The Italian Rose

44 – Discovery of the Impressionist Italian Artist, Licinio Barzanti (1857-1944), painter of Roses, Cats and Landscapes. Look at the painting on the left with cats, you can see a bouquet of roses, Barzanti was a real rose lover.

45 – A basquet of Roses with Apples by Barzanti.

46 – This painting is a flower painting or a landscape ?

47 – Roses and Cats by Licinio Barzanti (1857-1944).

48 – “Paesaggio con case” by Barzanti. Oil on Panel.

-> PART ELEVEN  : The Chinese Rose

49 – Discovery of the Lingnam Master, Chen Shuren (1883-1948) and his Painted Rose. Lingnan’ or ‘South of the Ranges’ refers to that part of China to the south
of the ‘Five Ranges’ which are Tayu, Qitian, Dupang, Mengzhu, Yuecheng. These ranges separate the river basin of Changjiang, or the Yangzi River, in the central part of China
from that of Zhujiang or the Pearl River, in the south. In the Tang dynasty (618-906) Lingnan was the official name for the area covering the provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi
as well as Annan. The region covered by the name Lingnan has changed with time. Today, ‘Ling”‘nan’ and ‘Guangdong’ can almost be treated as synonyms.

Thus when we speak of ‘Lingnan painting’ today, we are referring to the work of painters in the Guangdong province in general. Strictly speaking, the two terms ‘Lingnan painting’
and ‘Lingnan School painting’ are not interchangeable. The ‘Lingnan School’ is only one of the many schools of painting in Lingnan, or Guangdong, and it should not be used to refer
to painting of the Guangdong province as a whole.

Since late nineteenth century, the Lingnan School of painting has exerted tremendous influence on the painting development of the Lingnan area, so much so that it brought forth
a new movement in Chinese painting in the first half of the twentieth century. This was the result of the heroic effort of Gao Jianfu (1879-1951), Gao Qifeng (1889-1933) and …
Chen Shuren (1883-1948). The success of these three painters was so prominent that they are hailed as the ‘Three Masters of Lingnan’. You can read more on the Lingnanart Website.

50 – Chen Shuren Paintings.  Born in Panyu, Guangdong, one of the founders of Lingnan Painting School and renowned politician. Chen Shuren learned painting from Ju Lian when young. In 1905, he joined the new China Party
and continued his study at Kyoto Art Academy of Japan. He was involved in the restructuring of KMT and succeeded to Sun Yat-sen as the Director of Overseas Chinese Bureau. After settling down in Guangzhou in 1947,
he concentrated on art creation and produced a collection of poems, collections of paintings as” Chinese Paintings by Chen Shuren” and “Chen Shuren’s Sketches”. To commemorate his contributions, a memorial house in his name
was built on the ruins of his former residence and open to the public on Nov. 26, 1988. A memorial hall for his son Chen Fu, a member of CPC and a revolutionary martyr, is also built inside the two-storied architecture.

-> PART TWELVE  : The Swedish Rose

51 – Olle Hjortzberg (1872-1959) : The bouquet of Roses on the table.

52 – Olle Hjortzberg : Roses, watercolor. 1959.

53 – Still Life, 1942. Stunning !

54 – Bouquet with wildflowers, 1951.

55 – Olle Hjortzberg works – The poster from the Olympic Summer Games in Stockholm 1912 was drawn by Olle Hjortzberg (1872-1959), a well-known Swedish decorative painter. He was versatile and his works includes
ecclesiastical drawing, bookbinding and portrait painting or still lifes with roses or wildflowers. The drawing in this poster (on the top left) represents Art Nouveau, with decorative floating lines. It was to carry the Swedish
colours around the world. Art Nouveau played an important role in this complex period with the beginning of mass advertising. The nakedness of the men, in classic Greek Olympic style, drew some attention and Hjortzberg
solved this problem by using the Art Nouveau ribbons were they were most needed. The Olympic Games in Stockholm were a success for Sweden, and the Swedish athletes won more medals than anyone else.

The twelve roses painted by twelve Masters.