Oil painting, 'Flowers in a Niche', Roelandt Savery, 1621

A bouquet of flowers in an earthenware jar set into a niche, a fly, butterfly and lizard visible amongst the blooms

Bequeathed by Rev. Alexander Dyce

Bequeathed by Rev. Alexander Dyce, 1869
The Reverend Alexander Dyce :
South Kensington Museum Art Handbooks. The Dyce and Forster Collections. With Engravings and Facsimiles. Published for the Committee of Council on Education by Chapman and Hall, Limited, 193, Piccadilly, London. 1880. Chapter I. Biographical Sketch of Mr. Dyce. pp.1-12, including 'Portrait of Mr. Dyce' illustrated opposite p.1.

Science and Art Department of the Committee of Council on Education, South Kensington Museum.A Catalogue of the Paintings, Miniatures, Drawings... Bequeathed by The Reverend Alexander Dyce. London, 1874. A 'Note' on page v comments, 'This catalogue refers to the Art portion of the Collection bequeathed to the South Kensington Museum by the Reverend Alexander Dyce, the well-known Shakespearian scholar, who died May 15, 1869'. The Catalogue. Paintings, Miniatures, &c. by Samuel Redgrave notes of the 'Oil Paintings', 'The strength of Mr. Dyce's valuable bequest to Department of Science and Art does not lie in [this] portion ... which is in its nature of a very miscellaneous character. The collection was made apparently as objects offered themselves, and without any special design.' Dyce's main interest was in literary subjects, and this is reflected in many of the paintings he bequeathed to the V&A.

Historical significance: Roelandt Savery (1576-1639) was a Flemish painter and etcher of landscapes, animal subjects, and still-lifes and was the best-known member of a family of artists. He was born in Courtrai, grew up in Amsterdam, and in 1619 settled in Utrecht. However, he is perhaps best known for his association with Prague, where he worked for Emperor Rudolf II from 1603-1613. Rudolf's famous menagerie allowed him to study in detail the exotic animals that became the trademark of his work. Savery's bright and highly finished style is similar to that of Jan Bruegel. Dyce. 4 is an example of one of Savery's rare flower paintings. However, together with Bosschaert, Savery became an influential Flemish exponent of this genre in Holland. Until 1550, gardens in Europe were planted exclusively with indigenous species. The introduction of the tulip, iris and rose completely transformed European gardens. Savery's bouquet contains both expensive cultivated flowers and wildflowers together with insects and a lizard. This work, like other flower still lifes, alludes to the transience of earthly existence.

The term ‘still life’ conventionally refers to works depicting an arrangement of diverse inanimate objects including fruits, flowers, shellfish, vessels and artefacts. The term derives from the Dutch 'stilleven', which became current from about 1650 as a collective name for this type of subject matter. Still-life reached the height of its popularity in Western Europe, especially in the Netherlands, during the 17th century although still-life subjects already existed in pre-Classical, times. As a genre, this style originates in the early 15th century in Flanders with Hugo van der Goes (ca.1440-1482), Hans Memling (ca.1435-1494) and Gerard David (ca.1460-1523) who included refined still-life details charged with symbolic meaning in their compositions in the same manner as illuminators from Ghent or Bruges did in their works for decorative purpose. In the Low Countries, the first types of still life to emerge were flower paintings and banquet tables by artists like Floris van Schooten (c.1585-after 1655). Soon, different traditions of still life with food items developed in Flanders and in the Netherlands where they became especially popular commodities in the new bourgeois art market.

A bouquet of flowers in an earthenware jar set into a niche, a fly, butterfly and lizard visible amongst the blooms. Roelandt Savery (1576-1639) was a Flemish painter and etcher of landscapes, animal subjects, and still-lifes and was the best-known member of a family of artists. He was born in Courtrai, grew up in Amsterdam, and in 1619 settled in Utrecht. However, he is perhaps best known for his association with Prague, where he worked for Emperor Rudolf II from 1603-1613. Rudolf's famous menagerie allowed him to study in detail the exotic animals that became the trademark of his work. Savery's bright and highly finished style is similar to that of Jan Bruegel. Dyce. 4 is an example of one of Savery's rare flower paintings. However, together with Bosschaert, Savery became an influential Flemish exponent of this genre in Holland. Until 1550, gardens in Europe were planted exclusively with indigenous species. The introduction of the tulip, iris and rose completely transformed European gardens. Savery's bouquet contains both expensive cultivated flowers and wildflowers together with insects and a lizard. This work, like other flower still lifes, alludes to the transience of earthly existence.

DYCE.4