|
|
Osias
Beert, a Flemish early still life painter, was born in Antwerp in 1579.
He joined the Antwerp St. Lukas Guild of St. Luke as a priviledged
master
in 1602. In 1606, he married one Margareta Yckens. Beert worked
in
Antwerp nearly all his life. As a still life painter, he specialized in
depicting tables laden with light food, his still lifes were precursors
of the ornamental still life that became very popular in Holland, later
known by the term Breakfast.
Only 8 of his works have survived. Beert’s still lifes, as it is usual
for all early still lifes are full of symbols, which are difficult to
understand
for modern viewers. Thus, his Still Life
with
Cherries and Strawberries in Porcelain Bowls, which
contains
fruit and insects is explained by a modern art historian in the
following
way: “Osias Beert shows the forces of good and evil fighting for man’s
soul in the form of animals. The human soul is represented by
strawberries
and cherries, which were considered to be fruits of Paradise. The
butterfly,
as a symbol of salvation and resurrection, is in opposition to the
dragonfly,
which was seen as a subspecies of the common fly. …they considered
flies
to be creatures of the devil.”
Osias Beert died in Anwerp probably in 1624.
Bibliography:
Still Life (Big Art)
by Norbert Schneider. Benedikt Taschen Verlag, 1999.