If, like us, you are fortunate enough to often stroll through the rooms of the Palatine Gallery at Palazzo Pitti, amidst hundreds of more famous paintings, you might come across truly worthy masterpieces, but largely unknown to most. This is what happened to us with the paintings by Rachel Ruysch. Still lifes with hyper-realistic details, vibrant colors, and hidden meanings that captured our attention. And so, here we are writing to tell you about this painter.
Born in Amsterdam in 1664, Rachel Ruysch was the daughter of a renowned professor of anatomy and botany. She apprenticed under Willem van Aelst, a painter famous for his flowers and still lives. Ruysch’s paintings soon attracted the interest of the local wealthy bourgeoisie, fascinated by the almost scientific investigation the painter conducted on flowers and animals, supported by the great tradition of Dutch still life. The arrangement of flowers and fruits in space, subordinated to a careful study of diagonals, lights, and shadows, is what distinguishes Ruysch’s virtuosity and earned her the love of numerous patrons. In a career spanning more than sixty years, Ruysch created about a hundred masterpieces.
In 1693, after marrying the portraitist Juriaen Pool, she moved with him to The Hague. By 1699, both were members of the painters’ congregation in this city, with Ruysch being the first woman to join it. Her career blossomed during these years. Between 1708 and 1716, together with her husband, she served the Palatine Elector Johann Wilhelm of Düsseldorf, husband of Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici, who commissioned one painting per year in exchange for a generous annual salary. The Elector allowed the couple to remain in Holland instead of moving to the German court, so that Ruysch and her husband could continue to care for their numerous children. At the age of 47, the painter gave birth to the tenth and last member of her large family.
Eager to introduce his favorite painter beyond the northern European borders, the Palatine Elector sent to his father-in-law, Cosimo III, at the Florentine Medici court, a Still Life with a Basket of Flowers, Herbs, and Insects, along with the pendant Still Life with Fruit, both now stored in the deposits of the Uffizi Gallery. Returning to Amsterdam in 1716, the painter continued to work with great success until the age of 86.
Her compositions are not only elegant but also rich in allegorical meanings, as seen in the two works that caught our attention in the Putti Room of the Palatine Gallery. In this intimate space, set apart from the larger and more decorated representation rooms, among works by other Dutch artists, are hosted The Still Life with Fruits, Flowers, Reptiles, and Insects and the Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase and Pomegranates, both signed and dated 1716 and 1715 by Ruysch. Both canvases were purchased by the Lorraine family for Palazzo Pitti in 1823 from a private Parisian collection. In addition to their objective beauty and perfection in details, what astonishes us even more is the abundance of allegorical references contained in each element.
In Still Life with Fruits, Flowers, Reptiles, and Insects, the lizard in the foreground, considered an impure animal in biblical tradition, is feeding on an egg, a symbol of life and rebirth. Other eggs are safely tucked away in a nest, symbolizing protection. At the center of the composition, highlighted by clear light, the juicy peaches composed of pulp, pit, and inner seed evoke the Trinity; the grapes surrounding them are a traditional Christological symbol, and if chestnuts in Medieval times alluded to the Immaculate Conception, in the 17th century, they were a reference to pregnancy. From the background, like if it was a dark forest, some golden ears of wheat come out as a symbol of abundance.
In the Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase and Pomegranates, the vivid colors of the flowers evoke multiple meanings: the red blood of tulips, alluding to the sacrifice of Jesus but also to life; the white of peonies recalls purity; the sunflower is typically a symbol of light and life as well. But in this overflowing bouquet of flowers, the sunflower hangs downward and is positioned away from the center of the composition. The pomegranates on the left recall the unity of the Church, and in the open one, the red seeds remind us of the sacrifice of the Passion of Jesus.
In these paintings, nature becomes a mirror of religious traditions and more. Fruits, flowers, and insects are also an allegory of everyday life, the struggle between good and evil, and the difficulties of existence. Could you ever have imagined so many meanings behind a “simple” still life? In these works, we found a brilliant and silent world, a reflection of the education, interests, and life of an extraordinary woman and painter, and we decided to share these extraordinary surprises with you!
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