CORNELIS KRUYS (HAARLEM 1619/20-1654? SCHIEDAM)

Cornelis Kruys entered the Guild of St. Luke in Haarlem in 1644, where he was clearly influenced by the still lifes of Willem Claesz. Heda and Pieter Claesz.. In 1649 he became a member of the Guild of St. Luke in Leiden and two years later, in 1651 he moved to Schiedam, where he passed away in probably 1654. His oeuvre was rather unknown until the mid-twentieth Century, owing to an inventory of 1668 noting him only as a still life painter of flowers. His monochrome banketjes have often been misattributed to the more famous Haarlem artists such as Claesz. and Heda, as was the present lot in the past.

We are grateful to Dr. Fred Meijer for confirming the attribution to Cornelis Kruys and pointing out his characteristic use of colour. He dates the picture to circa 1650.