Biography

Flemish still-life and flower painter. He was baptized on 24 Sept 1623 in Antwerp. In 1643/44 he became master in the Antwerp guild of St Luke. On 13 Oct 1647 he became a member of the pious bachelor society. In 1652 he collaborated with Erasmus Quellinus, who painted the figures in a Garland of Flowers and Fruit conserved in Norwich. On 22 Oct 1656 he married and two years later had a son, Jan Frans van Son (1658-1718), who became a painter and lived in England where he developed a reputation for his still-life paintings of fruit and flowers with works that were similar to those of his father, but modified slightly for English tastes.

Joris van Son's floral garlands reveal the influence of Daniel Seghers, although conceptually his still-lifes largely manifest his response to the work of Jan Davidsz. de Heem. However, in van Son's paintings the lighting is softer, resulting in a greater differentiation between diverse objects. His rendition of peaches is particularly noteworthy due to their realistically fuzzy appearance.