Tulips in art

Tulips have long been a passionate subject for artists, although it took until the 17th century for the tulip to become an exclusive garden plant. In the 12th century Omarr Khayam wrote a poem about tulips. Since then tulips have bloomed into immortality in works of art.

While creating this page, I stumbled across information on tulipmania, an investment craze that went bung in the 16th Century. Fascinating!

Photo of bowing tulip by ashroc.

Surprisingly Tulips do not naturally occur in nature. Their genes originate in a number of wild flowers from Central Asia and Iraq. Their antecedents are made up of a variety of colours, and delicately shaped petals.

Tulips can be traced back to the Ottoman empire. The common name is thought to come from the Turkish word meaning ‘muslin’ or ‘gauze’, referring to the turban-like appearance of a tulip in full bloom. Tulips defined nobility and privilege.

The elegant curling petals of the tulip were particularly attractive to artisans. Jugs, plates and tiles transformed basic pottery to sought after ceramics.

Interest in continuing to plant tulips is evident throughout the Ottoman areas of modern Istanbul as if to exemplify it centuries old celebration of exquisite beauty.

The tulip is a popular choice for depiction in the work of artists. With graceful stems, flowing leaves and an ever variable array of colours and textures, it is no wonder why this is the case.

Artwork from as early as the 17th Centrury features tulips in paintings by Judith Leyster. Judith, a Dutch golden age artist and a specialized painter of flowers, was a student of Frans Hals.

Brilliant tulip books were produced, full of beautiful illustrations of tulips. Today, these books are rare, and highly sought after.

Painting of Tulip from: Tulip book by Judith Leyser in the possession of the Frans Hals Museum. Judith Jansdr Leyster (Haarlem 1609 - Heemstede 1660)

500 years old, yet this painting seems fresh, vibrant and current.

A past exhibition featuring twenty works from the Rijksmuseum's collection, including flower still lifes, porcelain tulip vases, dazzling glass work and exquisite textiles.

The Dutch Golden age was in the 17th Century, when all things Dutch were hailed as glorious around the world.

There were a number of types of tulips: from cup-shaped, bright colored tulips to colourful jewel tones to pastel shades. Form of petals is varied, some with feathery petals, some with petals that are twisted or curled.

This is a watercolour on paper of the Semper Augustus. This tulip is famous for being the most expensive tulip sold during the tulip mania in the netherlands in the 17th century.

Just one of these tulips was sold for 5,500 guilders. At the height of tulipmania in the 17th Century the price reached 10,000 gilders. Imagine how many people that amount of money back then would have fed and clothed.

Guilders (or florins) were the currency of the time in the Netherlands. To give you an idea of comparative rates, in the 17th Century a tradesman such as a carpenter would earn about 250 florins per year. An enterprising merchant could earn up to 3,000 florins a year.

So not many people could afford to buy one of these tulips, but I bet a lot of them wished that they did.

Information sourced from: http://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_...

Fads aren't limited to today's electronic gadgets. In the 16th Century, if you were Dutch and didn't own a tulip or two...

Interestingly, at the time it wasn't the flowers which were of high value but the bulbs. Particularly for scarce or popular types.

Strangely though, after the market collapsed, flowers were still quite popular for the Dutch. At least in their art.

A cultivar named after Judith Leyster, this tulip bears solitary, ivory and rose flamed, red bowl-shaped flowers on sturdy upright stems which have several leaves.

Have you ever wanted to know how to paint tulips like the master artists? Have a look at this video.

Art Nouveau embraced a stylized approach in depicting natural forms and shapes.

Tulips, along with sunflowers, roots, buds and seedpods make up a highly recognised style along with geometric shapes and lines.

Floral motifs and elegant curves decorated items from cups to furniture and buildings.