Jan Voerman (Kampen, Netherlands, 1857 - 1941, Hatten, Netherlands)
Nasturtiums, about 1894
Opaque watercolor on paper, 34.3 x 55.3 cm (13 1/2 x 21 3/4 in.)
This is an opaque watercolor painting which depicts pots of nasturtium flowers. Lined up horizontally across the center of this picture are three shiny pots of yellow and orange nasturtiums amid vibrant green leaves. The center pot is dark blue and the other two are light blue. They are placed on a dark surface that reflects the pots, flowers and leaves. The upper background is dark green.
Blue Room
Commentary
Dutch artist Jan Voerman painted this still life of three pots of yellow and orange nasturtiums in the late 19th century. Isabella Stewart Gardner’s friend Ralph W. Curtis brought the work to her attention, writing "it is A1 but will suffer no little ones to hang near it, unless they be real nasturtiums." Isabella was an avid gardener and grew nasturtium vines at her greenhouses in Brookline, Massachusetts. Annually in April, she placed them on the balconies in the courtyard to celebrate her birthday—a tradition the Museum continues today.