Still-life with Dish of Fruit
by AST, Balthasar van der, Oil on wood
Bosschaert’s type of flower piece remained popular until after the middle of the 17th century. His most interesting follower is his brother-in-law Balthasar van der Ast who manages to avoid the hard, metallic quality of so many others influenced by Bosschaert. Van der Ast’s paintings are more varied than Bosschaert’s, and they frequently include lively lizards and toads. His particular speciality is the still-life composed exclusively of shells.