Aconitum variegatum (broget stormhat); Aconitum napellus (ægte stormhat) 1649 - 1659

Editor: This beautiful botanical illustration, created sometime between 1649 and 1659 by Hans Simon Holtzbecker, depicts two types of Aconitum, also known as Monkshood. The colors are so vibrant; it's almost like a photographic record. What strikes you most about this work? Curator: Oh, this takes me back to my grandmother's garden! What I find fascinating is the almost obsessive attention to detail, capturing the plant’s essence with a scientific precision that is truly remarkable, and I feel a unique artistic rendering that balances a very formal precision and then almost gives itself permission to add some slightly quirky rendering details in a manner that suggests an authentic sensibility. Have you ever considered the tension between science and art that underlies such works? Editor: That's interesting! It's almost as if Holtzbecker wanted to document the plant but couldn't help adding a touch of his own artistic flair. What does the style suggest to you about the period it was created in? Curator: It's a fantastic insight into the Dutch Golden Age. A time when the natural world became a source of intense fascination and was regarded with reverence by scientific minds, who treated knowledge as an absolute treasure. Holtzbecker really exemplifies that, doesn't he? His skill and emotional rendering also suggest he probably was also operating as something like a “court” painter. What do you imagine the relationship of the artist to his patron might have looked like? Editor: That's a lot to think about! It’s amazing how much history and interpretation can be packed into what at first glance just seems like a pretty flower painting. Curator: Exactly! Art has this funny way of being so much more than just what we see on the surface. It is almost like unlocking the soul of a given subject with an array of unique representational elements.