Joris van Son (1623-1667) - Still life with fruit, wheat, corn and ribbon

Joris van Son (Antwerp 1623-Antwerp 1667) representing a “Still life with fruit, wheat, corn and ribbon”.
Oil on canvas
Exceptional carved wooden frame, 18th century, gilded with gold.

Dimensions of the oil on canvas: 73 cm x 58 cm

Joris van Son was born in Antwerp as the son of Joris and Catharina Formenois and was baptized on September 24, 1623 in Antwerp Cathedral. His work shows strong influence from Jan Davidszoon de Heem, a Dutch still life painter active in Antwerp from the mid-1630s. This may indicate that Joris van Son studied with de Heem or was an assistant in de Heem's workshop. Heem. He became a master in the Guild of Saint Luke of Antwerp in the years 1643/1644.
On October 22, 1656, Joris van Son married Cornelia van Heulens. From this union three children were born: Cornelia van Heulens born on August 3, 1656 (the still life painter Jan Pauwel Gillemans the Elder was her godfather), a son, named Jan Frans, born in 1658, then the couple's last child, called Maria Chatharina, was baptized on October 5, 1660.
Van Son's work was highly regarded by collectors and his paintings were in the collections of artists such as Victor Wolfvoet and dealers such as Geraert van Dorth. Van Son's pupils were Frans van Everbroeck, Jan Pauwel Gillemans the Younger, Cornelis van Huynen, Norbert Montalie and Abraham Herderwijn (Aberam Herderwyn).
Joris van Son died prematurely at the age of 44. He suddenly fell ill in May 1667 and died in his hometown where he was buried on June 25, 1667.
His work:
Joris van Son is a painter specialized in still lifes of fruits, flowers, banquets, vanities, but also paintings of garlands and pronkstillevens, that is to say sumptuous still lifes of luxurious objects. He is known for painting fish still-lifes representing the four elements. Van Son still-lifes almost always include fruits, often of varieties that are not native but imported. His still lifes are animated by branches of cherries or raspberries, which give the composition a great lightness. The objects are placed on a table or a ledge at one level to create intimacy with the viewer.

Another important part of van Son’s production falls into the category of «garland paintings». The garland paintings are a type of still life invented in the early seventeenth century in Antwerp by Jan Brueghel the Elder and practiced subsequently by great painters of Flemish still life, and in particular Daniel Seghers . Paintings of this kind generally show a flower or, less frequently, a garland of fruits around an image of devotion or a portrait. In the later development of the genre, the devotional image is replaced by other subjects such as portraits, mythological subjects and allegorical scenes.

Van Son painted garlands of flowers and fruits, and sometimes a combination of the two, with the upper part being composed of flowers and the lower part of fruit or vice versa. The fruits and flowers of these compositions are grouped in groups attached to sculptural frames. His flower garlands reveal the influence of Daniel Seghers, although conceptually his work is closer to that of Jan Davidsz de Heem who is presumed by some art historians to have been his master. The light of van Son’s work is softer than that of de Heem’s work. Van Son was particularly skilled in rendering the physical qualities of the fruit skin, as evidenced by the hairiness of the peaches in his compositions.

The museums:
Netherlands, RKD Museum in The Hague, «Still Life of Column and Lobster Show» (1662).
Netherlands, Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, “Fruits surrounding a classical bust carved into niche” (1660).
Netherlands, Museum of Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, «Niche with a stem, surrounded by a crown of flowers and fruits» (1656).
Italy, Capodimonte Museum in Naples, «Still life of fruits in a basket, with flowers and a bird».
England, Kingston Lacy at Wimborne, “Fruits and Corn Hanging from a Ribbon” (1654).
France, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Tours, «Still Life with Cheese» (1650).
France, Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Angoulême, «Table Servie» (1645).
Sweden, Stockholm National Museum, “Still Life with Fruits and Boiled Crayfish”.