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Circle of Abraham Mignon (German/Dutch, 1640-1679), "Arrangement with Peonies, Grapes, Pears, Sunflowers and Peaches", fourth quarter 17th/first quarter 18th century, oil on canvas, unsigned, stretcher inscribed "Abraham Mignon", 25-1/2" x 29-3/4". Presented in an 18th-century giltwood frame inscribed "Georg Frederick Carl Joseph". Abraham Mignon's still lifes belong to the canon of the Dutch Golden Age. Shortly after arriving in Utrecht from his native Germany, Mignon joined St. Luke's painters guild, where he met and trained under the Dutch still life master Jan de Heem. Mignon went on to become one of the most celebrated painters of St. Luke's guild, producing work for King Louis XIV and the Electorate of Saxony. Mignon's delicate style of diverse flowers and fruits reflect the maritime prosperity of the Dutch Republic, which controlled European trade to the East through the East India Company. Peaches, poppies and pomegranates, indigenous to China and Southwest Asia, were revered delicacies in 17th-century Holland. To possess a table with such an assortment of flowers and ripe fruits, which Mignon often accentuated with mollusks and butterflies, was the ultimate symbol of secular wealth. The painting offered here exemplifies many of the distinct qualities of Mignon's work, notably the use of chiaroscuro in the foreground, which brilliantly lights the peonies and peaches against a dark background on a slight diagonal plane that barely recedes in space. The lighting of the peaches almost makes them appear white against the red peony. Centering a composition by the juxtaposition of red and white flowers/fruit was one of Mignon's trademark characteristics, as was the use of sunflowers and grape leaves as framing devices. This painting is probably from the St. Luke guild circle of Abraham Mignon, possibly even the apprenticed hand of one of Mignon's disciples: Elias van den Broeck (1649-1708), Ernst Stuven (1657-1712) or Willem Grasdorp (1678-1723). The massive gilt frame is of equal historic merit. The partially effaced inscription on the side, which denotes the title and birth date in German of Georg Frederick Carl Joseph, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, along with the different rabbets on two of the four sides, strongly suggests that the frame once contained a portrait of the Duke. Sometime between the early to mid-19th century, this frame was cut down and resized to fit the current painting from the circle of Mignon.


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July 25, 2015 10:00 AM CDT
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