Getty Museum in Los Angeles acquires Still Life from Lempertz Auction

A rediscovered still life by the Dutch master Jan Davidsz. de Heem was a highlight of the recent German spring auction season. The work is now part of the collection of the Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

Last year, Lempertz auctioned a previously unknown painting by the Dutch artist Jan Davidsz. de Heem for €3.55 million. Prior to that, it had been in family ownership for three generations, before being made accessible once again to collectors and art historians through the Cologne auction house. Fred Meijer, one of the leading specialists in Dutch still-life painting, included the work in his catalogue raisonné shortly before the auction.

Another important work by this painter was auctioned in New York a few weeks after the Lempertz auction; however, the American museum opted for the piece offered in Cologne. 

The still life with flowers and fruits on a stone ledge is now in the collection of the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, making it part of one of the world’s most important collections of Old Masters. We are delighted that, with the rediscovery of this major work by Jan Davidsz. de Heem, an outstanding example of Dutch painting has been returned to the international art world.

Another work by this artist will be offered for sale in the upcoming Lempertz Old Masters auction on 21st May.

Jan Bykowski
Press and Public Relations
info@lempertz.com
Tel. 0221 925729 -57