Bas Meeuws

UNTITLED (#135), 2014

 

C-Print on dibond behind acrylic
130 x 80 cm
Edition 7 of 8

 

Price: euro 3.700

 

Bas Meeuws (1974) is a self-taught photographer who reinvents the age old tradition of the flower still life. In his work he traded in oil on panel for digital photography. Bas composes his work the exact same way the old masters did, flower by flower. His colourful, layered photographic compositions transcend time. With his still lifes the photographer intends to add real and timeless beauty to everyday life and to instil in his audience an admiration for nature’s richness.

The artist increases the depth of the experience of beauty in yet another, powerful way. Because his works explicitly draw on seventeenth century still life painting, they entertain strong ties with the history and tradition of Dutch art. In all their smooth digital beauty, the photos evoke echoes of the Dutch Golden Age, with its busy mercantilism, its appreciation of tulip (bulbs) and independence, its exciting art scene. Bas confidently plays one time reference against the other.

In this same exhibition shows Bas’ main source of inspiration; an original, 17th century flower still life by Cornelis de Heem (1631-1659) a member of one of the most significant families of flower still-life specialists.