Juan de Arellano

Juan de Arellano was a Spanish painter of the Baroque era who specialized in floral still life paintings.

Born in Santorcaz, near Madrid, where he died. He was a pupil of Juan de Solis. Heavily influenced by Flemish artists (such as Daniel Seghers) and Italian painters (such as Mario Nuzzi), Juan de Arellano was considered to be exceptional in this subject matter. According to one of his colleagues, de Arellano decided to focus exclusively on floral paintings because it offered more pay while requiring less work. Some of de Arellano's most famous pieces include Bouquet of Flowers (c.1660), and Garland of Flowers, Birds and Butterfly, currently on display at the Louvre. He also painted for the sacristy of the church of San Jerónimo el Real of Madrid. The Prado Museum houses an interesting repertoire. Another interesting set of still lifes is exhibited at The Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, one other splendid Vases before a Mirror is exhibited at The Coruña Fine Arts Museum. A particularly ambitious still life belongs to the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum. The Museum Cerralbo holds a Concert of Birds with Flowers and another is attributed to it in the Museum of Romanticism in Madrid. Compare the term Naturaleza muerta or Bodegón for a description of one style of Spanish still life paintings.

Text courtesy of Wikipedia, 2023