Andries Benedetti or Andreas Benedetti (1615/18 – after 1649 and before 1660) was a

Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...

still life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, human-m ...

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

mainly active in Antwerp who is known for his fruit still lifes and

pronkstilleven ''Pronkstilleven'' ( Dutch for 'ostentatious', 'ornate' or 'sumptuous' still life) is a style of ornate still life painting, characterised by large and complex compositions and an elaborate palette. Pronkstillevens typically depict a wide variety ...

s.Andreas Benedetti
at the

Netherlands Institute for Art History The Netherlands Institute for Art History or RKD (Dutch: ), previously Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie (RKD), is located in The Hague and is home to the largest art history center in the world. The center specializes in document ...

Life

Little is known about the life of Andries Benedetti. The statement by an art historian that he was born in

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

in Italy is not corroborated by evidence. He was the son of Italian immigrants Pietro Benedetti (died before 1638) and Maria Torres who married in the

Antwerp Cathedral The Cathedral of Our Lady () is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Antwerp, Belgium. Today's seat of the Diocese of Antwerp started in 1352 and, although the first stage of construction was ended in 1521, has never been 'completed'. It was construct ...

in 1598. He had at least one sister and three brothers, all born in Antwerp between 1603 and 1612. The first firm record on the artist dates from 1636 when he was registered at the Antwerp

Guild of Saint Luke The Guild of Saint Luke was the most common name for a city guild for painters and other artists in early modern Europe, especially in the Low Countries. They were named in honor of the Evangelist Luke, the patron saint of artists, who was iden ...

as an apprentice of Vincent Cernevael.De liggeren en andere historische archieven der Antwerpsche sint Lucasgilde
Volume 2, by Ph. Rombouts and Th. van Lerius, Antwerp, 1864, p. 86 He trained also with

Jan Davidszoon de Heem Jan Davidsz. de Heem or in-full ''Jan Davidszoon de Heem'', also called ''Johannes de Heem'' or ''Johannes van Antwerpen'' or ''Jan Davidsz de Hem'' (c. 17 April 1606 in Utrecht – before 26 April 1684 in Antwerp), was a still life painter wh ...

, a prominent Dutch still life painter who was active in Antwerp from the mid-1630s. He paid de Heem 50 guilders for an apprenticeship of two years starting from 13 September 1638. Benedetti-prado

He was registered as a master in the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke in the guild year 1640–1641. The last record regarding the artist dates from 1649 when Jan Baptist Lust was registered in the Antwerp guild books as his apprentice. While a stay in Italy has been mentioned by an art historian there is no evidence for this. The still life painter Andries de Coninck whose work shows similarities with Benedetti's work was likely married to his sister Catherine.Andries de Coninck, ''An elaborate still life with a lobster, sweetmeat pie, oysters, fruit, and a blue and white wanli bowl, a partly filled tall, glass flagon of wine, a silver pokal and silver jug, all arranged on a draped table, a view of the countryside through a window behind''
at Sotheby's He seemed to have enjoyed important patronage as one of his

works Works may refer to: People * Caddy Works (1896–1982), American college sports coach * John D. Works (1847–1928), California senator and judge * Samuel Works (c. 1781–1868), New York politician Albums * ''Works'' (Pink Floyd album), a Pi ...

representing a still life with oysters, lobster and fruits was recorded in 1659 in the collection of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm, the art loving Governor General of the

Habsburg Netherlands Habsburg Netherlands were the parts of the Low Countries that were ruled by sovereigns of the Holy Roman Empire's House of Habsburg. This rule began in 1482 and ended for the Northern Netherlands in 1581 and for the Southern Netherlands in 1797. ...

. Three of his works, now in the collection of the Prado Museum, were originally in the collection of

Elisabeth Farnese Elisabeth Farnese (Italian: ''Elisabetta Farnese'', Spanish: ''Isabel de Farnesio''; 25 October 169211 July 1766) was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She was the '' de facto'' ruler of Spain from 1714 until 1746, since she managed ...

, the

Queen of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

by marriage to King Philip V, from where they passed to the royal collection of the

Royal Palace of Aranjuez The Royal Palace of Aranjuez () is one of the official residences of the Spanish royal family. It is located in the town of Aranjuez (Madrid), Spain. Established in the 16th century as a royal hunting lodge, the palace was built by order of Phi ...

.J. J Pérez Preciado, ''Andries Benedetti''
at the

Museo del Prado The Museo del Prado ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It houses collections of Art of Europe, European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 20th ce ...

It is not known when or where he died but it is believed that his date of date falls between 649 and 1660.

Work

Andries Benedetti was a

specialist who is known for his fruit still lifes and

s, the sumptuous still lifes that were popular in Flanders and the Dutch Republic from the 1640s. His work was indebted to de Heem's works in the disposition of objects although in Benedetti's work there is a greater profusion of objects. Benedetti followed the innovations of de Heem, by creating sumptuous compositions, which combine the colourful Flemish palette with the more muted tones popular in Dutch still life painting.Andries Benedetti, ''Still Life with a Vase of Roses and Tulips, a Ham on a Pewter Plate, Glassware, a Lobster and Fruit on a Ledge''
at Sotheby's Beneditti applied the paint less thickly than de Heem. Because of the close similarities in their output, Benedetti's paintings have been confused for a long time with those of de Heem. Only after the anagram " A b fe" was identified on several still lifes in the collection of the

Kunsthistorisches Museum The Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien ( "Vienna Museum of art history, Art History", often referred to as the "Museum of Fine Arts, Vienna") is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on the Vienna Ring Road, i ...

(Vienna) was it possible to attribute the works to Benedetti. His works influenced the work of the Italian

Pier Francesco Cittadini Pierfrancesco Cittadini (1616–1681) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in Bologna and noted for his portraits and lush still lifes. Biography Initially a pupil of Daniele Crespi, Cittadini moved to Bologna before the ...

and his presumed brother-in-law Andries de Coninck.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Benedetti, Andries 1610s births 1669 deaths Flemish Baroque painters Flemish still life painters Painters from Antwerp