A portrait of the famous flower painter Jan van Huysum, based on a painting by Arnold Boonen

According to the archives held at the château, the portrait is believed to be that of Justus Van Huysum (1659–1716), a flower painter, purchased in 1882 from Pittet, an art dealer in Paris, by Marie Clauzel. The portrait was purchased as a self-portrait of the painter. Jan van Huysum (1682–1749) was a Dutch painter trained by his father, Justus van Huysum the Elder (1659–1716), a flower painter and decorator. His work stands out from that of other flower painters both for his technical mastery and his particularly exuberant compositions. However, it appears that the portrait is actually of his son, Jan van Huysum (1682–1749).

During his lifetime, his work was highly sought after and he had an international clientele. This included members of numerous European royal families, who purchased his superb still lifes at high prices. His depictions of fruit and flowers, which delicately capture the velvety texture of the fruit or petals, were acquired notably by the King of Poland, the Tsar of Russia and the Duke of Orléans. In England, Robert Walpole (1676–1745), Britain’s first true Prime Minister, ensured he received widespread publicity. Alongside his contemporary, the flower painter Rachel Ruysch (1664–1750), Jan van Huysum was one of the greatest Dutch flower painters, whose influence in Europe lasted until the end of the^18th century. A renowned perfectionist, always seeking the most accurate combination of flowers according to the seasons, he would often deliver commissioned works late if he did not have the correct combination of seasonal flowers.

Arnold Boonen (1669–1729), who was active in Amsterdam from 1696 onwards, quickly became the city’s leading portraitist and naturally established himself as the painter of the greatest flower painter of his time. Jan van Gool, the biographer of^18th-century painters, already mentions Arnold Boonen as the artist behind a portrait of the famous still-life painter: ‘I have seen a portrait by him of Jan van Huysum, the Phoenix of Flower Painters ’ (S. Segal, M. Ellens and Joris Dik, *The Temptation of Flora. Jan van Huysum (1682–1749)*, p . 135). 

He painted at least four portraits of Jan van Huysum, which were for a time considered to be self-portraits of his father, Justus van Huysum; three of these are known to exist today. Two of them are held in public collections, one in Oxford and the other in Amsterdam. Aulteribe’s version is based on the portrait held in Amsterdam, but is smaller in scale and simplified: the painter’s palette has been omitted and his left hand hangs in mid-air, whilst his right hand holds a drawing of flowers.

The purchase of such a painting by Pierre’s family can probably be explained by their passion for botany, which is also evident in their acquisition of the rare volume *Le Jardin de la Malmaison* (by É.-P. Ventenat, Paris, Imprimerie de Crapelet, 1803), which features the rare plants collected by Joséphine at her final residence. Furthermore, there is a rose called ‘van Huysum’, bred by Louis Parmentier ( ) before 1837 (a Gallic rose hybrid), who named it in honour of the flower painter.

F. Meijer, “The Portraits of Jan van Huysum by Arnold Boonen and Others”, in Oud Holland, 108, 1994, no. 3, pp. 128–30.

S. Segal, M. Ellens and Joris Dik, *The Temptation of Flora. Jan van Huysum (1682–1749)*, exhibition catalogue, Delft/Houston 2006, p. 137.