Lot 31: Johannes Bouman , Strasbourg 1601 - 1658 Utrecht A still life with pears and apples on a stone ledge oil on panel, shaven on the right edge

oil on panel, shaven on the right edge

measurements note 38.1 by 44.7 cm.

THE PROPERTY OF A GERMAN LADY
Not much of the artist's life is recorded nor is Bouman's oeuvre well studied. His fruit still lifes show the influence of Balthasar van der Ast (1593/4 -1657), but also attest to Bouman's own characteristic handling, in particular the robust forms of the fruit. Here the fruits are situated close to the picture plane and their bold forms are surrounded by the irregular contour lines of the leaves. The straightforwardness of the image is strengthened by the limited palette, but rich colour contrasts, that makes a highly effective composition. A comparable, but more elaborate composition is in the Musée de Strasbourg (inv. no. 379), which is signed and dated 1635.υ1 Both the present work and the Strasbourg picture deviate from Bouman's compositional norm, since in both pictures the fruit is placed directly on the stone ledge and not in a bowl or basket. 1. See E. Gemar-Koeltzsch, Holländische Stillebenmaler im 17. Jahrhundert, Lingen 1995, vol. 2, p. 182, reproduced.