Daniel Seghers - The Virgin and Child with John the Baptist in a Floral Cartouche

Daniel Seghers

The Virgin and Child with John the Baptist in a Floral Cartouche

Oil on canvas (relined). 61.5 x 55 cm.
Signed and dated to the stone cartouche in the lower right: DS (conjoined) Soc. Jesu 1646.

Daniel Seghers trained as a flower painter under Jan Brueghel the Elder as of 1611, and was accepted to the Antwerp painters' guild in the same year. As a member of the Jesuit Order, he used the suffix “Soc. Jesu” (Societas Jesu) when signing his works, and did so in the present image. Images of the Virgin or Saints surrounded by garlands such as the present work were among Segher's most beloved motifs. The vividly coloured flowers contrast sharply against the greyish brown of the relief, and the bright blooms develop a luminous, sculptural quality against the dark background. His paintings were already highly sought-after throughout his lifetime.
We are also delighted to present a painting by his pupil Jan Philip van Thielen (1618-1667) in this auction with the folowing lot, in which the influence of this master is highly evident.

Provenance

North German private collection.