From November 26, 2024 to March 16, 2025, the Alte Pinakothek in Munich will be hosting the world's first major monographic exhibition on Rachel Ruysch. The exhibition is a collaborative effort between the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, the Toledo Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Rachel Ruysch (1664-1750) has always been regarded as one of the most important flower painters in European art, but her life and work have remained insufficiently researched to date. In addition to her perfected fine painting technique, her still lifes, featuring flowers, leaves, fruits, and insects rendered in the finest detail, reflect her interest in botanicaland scientific subjects. In conjunction with the exhibition “Rachel Ruysch - Nature into Art” and the CODARTfocus in Munich, the workshop “Nature into Art” will take place on February 11 and 12, 2025 at Schloss Nymphenburg in Munich. The aim of the workshop is to deepen the new perspectives gained from the exhibition, particularly regarding the interplay between art and science. The speakers represent the interdisciplinary approach of the exhibition, which are derived from different scientific fields, such as art history, conservational sciences, postcolonial studies and gender studies, as well as researchers with a botanical focal point. The workshop is intended to sustainably deepen the network of scholars with unique scientific approaches and from different countries, universities, research institutions and museums. Also, the participation and attendance of students from the University of Konstanz is planned, to involve the next generation of scholars and raise awareness for current research in the field of early modern painting.

VENUE
Carl Friedrich von Siemens Foundation, Schloss Nymphenburg, Südliches Schlossrondell 23, 80638 München

ORGANIZERS
Christopher Atkins (Center for Netherlandish Art at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston), Robert Felfe (University of Graz), Karin Leonhard (University of Konstanz), Thijs Weststeijn (University of Utrecht)

PROGRAM

February 11, 2025
9.00 – 9.30: Arrival
9.30 – 10.00: Opening Remarks

10.00 – 10.45: Marlena Schneider (Doerner Institut - Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen)
"Art Technological Insights on five Paintings by Rachel Ruysch from the former Wittelsbach Electoral Collections"

10.45 – 11.25: Kirsten Derks (University of Antwerp)
"Tried and tested? Rachel Ruysch’s working methods in her mature and late works"

11.25 – 11.45: Coffee Break

12.00 – 12.45: Larissa van Vianen (University of Amsterdam)
"From Observation to Publication: Pierre Lyonet and the Art of Eighteenth-Century Natural History"

12.45 – 13.30: Jaya Remond (Ghent University)
"Printing Floral Imagery in Northern Europe c. 1590-1610: Pictorial Discourses and Frames of Representation"

13.30 – 14.30: Lunch

14.30 – 15.15: Marie Amélie Landrin (Sorbonne University)
"Rachel Ruysch : Botanical art at the intersection of science and patronage"

15.15 – 15.55: Laura Kromer (University of Konstanz)
"The Companion Pieces of Rachel Ruysch - Intertwinings of Pictorial Combination"

15.55 – 16.15: Coffee Break

16.15 – 17.00: Catherine Powell-Warren (KU Leuven)
Tangled Roots: Dutch Women, Art, and Science

17.00 – 17.15: Closing Remarks
17.30 – 18.00: "Sektempfang" / Reception
18.00 – 19.00 Judith Noorman (University of Amsterdam)
Presentation

February 12, 2025
10.00 – 12.00: Study day in the exhibition “Rachel Ruysch – Nature into Art” at the Alte Pinakothek, Munich
Students from the University of Konstanz will be offering tailored guided tours

Participation in the event is free of charge, but registration is requested.

For more information and to register for the workshop “Nature into Art”, please contact at laura.kromeruni-konstanz.de until February 2, 2025.