Balthasar van der Ast(1593/94-1657) Balthasar van der Ast was born in Middelburg. There he was apprenticed to his brother-in-law, Ambrosius Bosschaert. Van der Ast, his brother-in-law and three nephews have become known as the Bosschaert dynasty, a group of painters famous for their still lifes. In 1615, Van der Ast and the Bosschaert family moved to Bergen op Zoom, and a few years later to Utrecht. In 1632 he settled in Delft, where he married. Van der Ast specialised in still lifes of flowers and fruit, as well as painting a number of remarkable shell still lifes. He worked together with Roelant Savery and taught Jan Davidsz. de Heem and the sons of Ambrosius Bosschaert. |
