July 2019 – Paula Kuitenbrouwer

Rachel Ruysch and a Prosperous Floral Bouquet Studies

I have studied some Dutch Golden Age painters in the past, and Rachel Ruysch (1664-1750) was one of my favourite painters. She painted very well, and had ten children! It bemuses me how one can paint so exquisitely and have ten children (therefore a minimum of ten pregnancies). One may assume that she died a tragic and premature death, but she did not. Her dated works establish that she painted from the age of 15 until she was 83. When it came to her household, though, she had help, because she could afford it.

Underdrawing with aquarelle by Paula Kuitenbrouwer

I like to point out that Dutch floral paintings in the Golden Age are an illusion. When we buy lush bouquets at the supermarket, we have little to no knowledge about the plants; we don’t know when they bloom and where they come from. We care a little about seasonable vegetables and fruits, but we don’t know where flowers come from. Golden Age floral painters studied flowers by making meticulous sketches and writing down which colours they needed.

Rachel Ruysch

Upon designing a large floral bouquet, they needed to check their notebooks and sketchbooks. This way, they put together flowers that do not bloom at the same time, and they also added seasonal butterflies or insects, therefore showing spring, summer, and autumn in one painting. Nowadays it is easy to consult a book or check a photo, and then put together flowers from all over the world, flowers that never bloom together at the same time. The difference between the Golden Age and now is that we fly in vegetables, fruits, and flowers, and that isn’t good for our carbon footprint. Golden Age painters created prosperous bouquets, not with the help of cargo trucks, cool cells, or air-planes, but with their own notes and sketches.

Paula Kuitenbrouwer

At Etsy & Instagram

May I kindly ask, have you appreciate this blog post and are you enjoy my website? Perhaps you like to support it? Here are two Tulip cards by Paula Kuitenbrouwer inspired by Dutch Golden Age Floral Artists.

Two (2) Beautiful and Elegant Tulip Art Cards by Paula Kuitenbrouwer

Two double folded and professionally printed art cards that come with matching (white) envelopes). A very elegant card with enough space for a message. Free shipping.

€18.00

Abundant Acanthus; A Lovely Gift for a William Morris or Plant Loving Person

‘Abundant Acanthus’ with plant motifs by William Morris and me. Here are the ‘work in progress’ photos and musings.

I have drawn this large graphite drawing with so much pleasure despite that I became dizzy from all these swirling botanical patterns, but isn’t elegance worth a bit of suffering?

Feel invited to discuss your Acanthus or any other botanical or Arts and Crafts monochromatic or full colour artwork with me (please, use the contact form).

Paula Kutenbrouwer

At Etsy & at Instagram

Two (2) Mandarin Duck art cards by Paula Kuitenbrouiwer (standing ducks)

Two double folded and professionally printed art cards with larger images inside (for framing). There is enough white space for a letter of message. The cards arrive with matching envelopes. Free shipping.

€18.00

New Work in the Making

I am working on the successor of ‘Praising Plants‘, ‘Ode to All Oak Trees‘ and ‘Sophisticated Succulents‘ and returning to William Morris for inspiration.

For years, William Morris didn’t appeal that much to me because I was still under the influence of my study of Dutch Baroque floral painters. They, as no one else, could create depth and a feeling as if you were looking at a real bouquet. These Golden Age masters positioned their composition in such way that a large flower vases, with all seasonal flowers, would stand proudly on show and you could -in your mind- walk around it. You would admire not only the flowers but also water-drops and insect that rested on big and small petals. But, of course, you were looking at an illusion. Dutch floral painters studied flowers, one by one, made sketches on them, and then set up a composition as if all flowers were all in bloom at the exact same time, which is never the case in nature. A wonderful illusion; a much admired illusion.

William Morris looked one dimensional compared to these baroque painters, yet, I learned to see that compared to modern flower designs, Morris’s work certainly isn’t one-dimensional. He may not create as much depth as I would like to see, but he weaves flower stems, creating the feeling as if you are in nature and looking at bushes, trees, and flower beds. Some flowers are near, some further away.

My drawing will have another lovely title using again a two word alliteration. You are invited to guess. However, before doing that, one needs some botanical knowledge and isn’t that not exactly what makes us love William Morris? He educates and inspired us with his design, botanical knowledge, and colourful palette.

William Morris mainly scatters and extends broad leaf foliage, flowers, and sometimes animals for the purpose of creating a repetitive, yet not too repetitive, wall paper design. There is a difference in what we expect from wall-paper, a painting, and from a mural. We expect a mural to trick us like Harry Potter on Platform 9 ¾: we like to run into the world that is suggested by a mural. Wall-paper, on the other hand, aims at supporting the design and décor of a room. Wall-paper must suggest less depth than a mural or painting, but more than a brick wall, by weaving the stems of flowers and using the technique of foreshortening, Morris does exactly that however not overly.

I have yet many white spaces to fill up with my own designs; this way of freehand drawing is enjoyable.

Here you find more on my William Morris Trellis watercolour painting. (Click here)

Paula Kuitenbrouwer

My shop is at Etsy & and my portfolio at Instagram

Commission Postage Stamp (Postzegel Tekenopdracht) and Cancellation Mark

Poststamp with Cancellation Mark by Royal Mail

Do you remember that I designed a Postage Stamp with two swans, a lotus flower, and a dragonfly? I used them on my correspondence. I added one on a postcard from Oxford to my father in the Netherlands. It received a Royal Mail cancellation mark, which feels like its design has been approved by Royal Mail standards. (I know, cancellation stamps are automated, but let us pretend it was done by a stereotype old man sitting at a wooden desk, carefully inspecting all letters one-by-one).

Paula Kuitenbrouwer

At Etsy and Instagram