A beautiful 19th-century still life with chrysanthemums by French painter, Alfred Rouby (1849-1909). It’s been rendered sublimely with deft impressionistic brushwork and a masterful eye for colour.

Rouby was a specialist and is predominantly known for his gorgeous still lifes, which tend to feature flowers and stoneware. Most of these include at least one flower laid in the foreground - as if fallen from the bouquet. Perhaps a symbolic reference to the passing of time.

Rouby lived in Paris and trained under Pierre-Marie Beyle (1837-1902).

The painting is signed in the bottom left and housed within a good later frame.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 26½” x 31” / 67cm x 78cm
Year of creation: c. 1890
Provenance: Germany
Condition: Very presentable. Canvas with a tidy patched repair. Frame with some light age-related wear.
Artist’s auction highlight: £7,500 achieved for a still life at Sotheby’s in 1996.