These baroque flowers seem to have stepped out of a 17th-century Dutch still life. Exhibited at Antwerp’s ‘Arts and Antiques’ Gallery (Stein and Cedric Moermans), they resemble to the paintings of Jan Bregel, nicknamed Velvet, for the extraordinary texture of the petals, the flowers, and his bouquets. Anna Volkova, their author, was inspired by the work of Dutch artist Ambrosius Bosschaert (1573 – 1621), whose ‘Vase with Flowers in the Window’ you can see in the permanent exhibition of the Mauritshuis Museum in The Hague, which depicts 30 species of flowers that every botanist will immediately identify.
But you can never tell at a glance what material Anna Volkova uses to create her flowers. My first guess was ‘paper’. Visual memory, paying tribute to the recently departed famous Belgian paper artist Isabelle De Bodgraaf, thought of this delicate material.
But it’s much more interesting than that. A ceramist by training (Stieglitz Academy in St Petersburg), Anna creates her fragile works in porcelain. ‘Seeking to convey the beauty of flowers, Volkova chose porcelain for its purity, plasticity and transparency, symbolising purity and luxury, eloquently expressing the elegance of flowers. Her experiments with porcelain led her to develop her own unique technique based on ancient Chinese recipes. This allows her to create exceptionally delicate and translucent pieces. Each flower, from petal to stem, is moulded by hand from tinted or white porcelain and acquires its unique appearance after firing at high temperature. Each flower is therefore unique in its shape and colour combination. The unglazed finish produces a delicate matte texture, giving it the appearance of a real flower. The intricate, baroque shape of the flower and its fragility are reminiscent of jewellery.’
Anna Volkova has lived in Amsterdam for over 20 years. Her workshop, where each petal is created by hand, is in the centre of the city of canals and freedom. The ceramicist was educated at the famous Rietveld Academy and Sandberg Institute. This gave an additional impetus to her work. St Petersburg classical education and European Dutch one gave a special creative symbiosis. And her two cities are inextricably linked – one built under the influence of the other. The artist’s work has also been influenced by Delft, a legendary city in the history of porcelain. At this year’s prestigious TEFAF in Maastricht, Anne’s collages of flowers with Delft vases from the ‘Whispers of Time’ series were exhibited at the Aronson Gallery in Maastricht.
In the exhibition Bloom Stories, everything came together. The Stein and Cedric Moermans brothers’ gallery “Arts and Antiques” is located opposite the Antwerp Botanical Gardens and the 5-star Hotel Botanic. Flowers and vases from 17th-century still-lifes are perfectly integrated into the antique interior and enter into a dialogue with art objects made of marble, wood and bronze. Curator and initiator of the exhibition Zarina Tayts jewellerly arranged tulips, thistles, vases and sketches of flowers by Anna Volkova in the antique gallery.
The unique collection of gentleman’s walking canes was brought to our attention at Antic Namur a month ago.
On 23 and 24 November from 11.00 to 18.00 the gallery is waiting for you at Leopoldstraat 47 with the exhibition ‘Bloom Stories’! And another month in the gallery’s opening hours.
