Jean-Baptiste MONNOYER (Lille, 1636 - London, 1699) Bouquet of flowers in a vase on an entablature Oil on canvas Bouquet of flowers in a vase on an entablature, oil on canvas, by J.-B. Monnoyer 30.31 x 24.80 in. 77 x 63 cm Provenance: G. M. Lotinga, Fine Arts Galleries, New Bond Street, London, before 1966; Acquired from him by Violette Worsley; Violette Worsley Collection (1906-1982); Anonymous sale; Monaco, Christie's, 3 December 1988, no. 52 Bibliography: Sydney H. Pavière, Jean Baptiste Monnoyer 1634-1699, Leigh-on-Sea, 1966, p. 33, no. 253, pl. 53 repr. The art of Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer embodies the renewal of the still life genre in France during the reign of Louis XIV. He moved from sober compositions with moralizing messages to a clearly ornamental approach, using vases, pieces of silverware, fruit and flowers for their decorative value, sometimes in profusion, sometimes in a refined, balanced arrangement. In the energising creative context of the early years of the monarch's personal reign, Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer was an inventor and leader in the field of floral compositions. He thus offered a perfect synthesis between Italian exuberance and the rigour of the northern schools. Our painting belongs to the English period of the painter's career, and is part of a return to the purity of the motif. Having reached the maturity of his style, the artist abandoned the profusion of objects in favour of a profound spirituality, elegantly and soberly deployed along the flowers, of which this composition is a perfect illustration. Jean-Baptiste MONNOYER (Lille, 1636 - London, 1699) 77 x 63 cm The art of Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer embodies the renewal of the still life genre in France during the reign of Louis XIV. He moved from sober compositions with moralizing messages to a clearly ornamental approach, using vases, pieces of silverware, fruit and flowers for their decorative value, sometimes in profusion, sometimes in a refined, balanced arrangement. In the energising creative context of the early years of the monarch's personal reign, Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer was an inventor and leader in the field of floral compositions. He thus offered a perfect synthesis between Italian exuberance and the rigour of the northern schools. Our painting belongs to the English period of the painter's career, and is part of a return to the purity of the motif. Having reached the maturity of his style, the artist abandoned the profusion of objects in favour of a profound spirituality, elegantly and soberly deployed along the flowers, of which this composition is a perfect illustration.