Jacobus van Looy (1855-1930)

In 1907 Van Looy returned to his hometown Haarlem after having lived in Amsterdam from 1877 until 1894. In this period the artist painted the backgarden of his house in Haarlem at the Kleine Houtweg, to which he and his wife, Titia van Gelder, had moved in 1913. The fruits and flowers growing there, were a constant source of inspiration. This resulted in a series of close-up paintings of groups of flowers and boughs of fruit. Instead of selling these paintings, Van Looy used them to decorate his house.