Hieronymus Galle the Elder

Subjects and genres recorded for the work are still life and floral. Places of work recorded in the authority are Antwerp and Rome. Residence is recorded at Antwerp. Work by Hieronymus Galle the Elder is recorded in the collections of Museum Bredius, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Führermuseum and Bonnefanten Museum.

Hieronymus Galle was the son of Elizabeth Claessens and Huibrecht Galle, Antwerp's envoy to the court in Brussels. • Illustration — A hare and songbirds on a stone ledge He was a pupil of Abraham Hack, who also taught the prolific Jan van den Hecke. He joined the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke in 1636 and became master in 1645–46. He travelled to Italy and was documented in Rome in 1661–1662. He shared lodgings in Rome with his compatriot Franciscus de Neve (II). After his stay in Rome he signed his works with the Italianized form of his name, Girolimo. It is believed he had a career in Antwerp where the last record about Galle dates to 1679. There are further indications that he worked in Brussels where he joined the local Guild of Saint Luke.

• Illustration — A swag of flowers He was known mainly for his flower and fruit still lifes. He also painted hunting pieces and garland paintings. He is further known for vanitas paintings. About 15 signed and dated paintings executed between 1643 and 1680 are known.

He was initially a follower of the leading Antwerp flower painters Daniel Seghers and Jan Brueghel the Elder. While Seghers generally bathed his flowers in full light, Galle more typically relied on an animated play of light and shade in his compositions. In his palette he showed a preference for salmon-pink tonalities. In comparison to Seghers, Galle's work is more modern and his floral compositions are more dense and more picturesque in their conception. • Illustration — Madonna in a flower garland His still lifes further show he absorbed Roman still life traditions of the mid-17th century. During his stay in Rome he would have been exposed to this tradition, which itself was influenced by Flemish still life painters such as Abraham Brueghel. The work of Italian artists such as Paolo Porpora and Michelangelo di Campidoglio may have been an influence on his work too. A vanitas painting by his hand is kept in the collection of the Museum of Western and Oriental Art, Kyiv.