Clara Peeters

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Clara Peeters (1594 - c. 1657) was assumed to be a Flemish painter noted for painting still lifes, particularly of breakfast scenes and florals. We assume she was born in Antwerp for no record was ever found of a painter by that name.

She lived in Amsterdam and The Hague. Her first known work was dated 1608, when she was 14. Her last painting was dated 1657, and is now lost. The circumstances of her death are unknown.

Meticulous in detail, Peeters included miniature self portraits within the reflections she painted. She was also very skilled at distinguishing textures. In her Still-Life of Fish and Cat, the coat of the cat is almost touchable and the reflections create the illusion of space (Clara Peeters Still Life 1). Some believe Religious symbolism was prevalent in her paintings;here the fish, symbol of Christ, is placed in the position of a cross. (Gaze Delia ed. Peeters 1081).

Contemporary artists believe she is one of the most uncelebrated painters because she was a woman. In fact, in Wendy Wasserstein's play The Heidi Chronicles, her underrated status due to her gender is addressed in the opening scene.

[edit] References

• Brief biography of Clara Peeters
• "Peeters, Clara" in Gaze, Delia, ed. Dictionary of Women Artists. 2 vols. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1997.