Still life of various flowers, figs and aspargus in and around a copper kettle

Still life of various flowers, figs and asparagus in and around a copper kettle, painted around 1660 and formerly in Bukowskis (a major Scandinavian auction house), represents Jan Fyt's engagement with the flower still life genre that was dominated in earlier generations by Jan Brueghel the Elder and Daniel Seghers. Fyt's flower still lifes are less celebrated than his animal and game compositions, but they demonstrate the same material intelligence applied to petals, stems, and botanical variety. The copper kettle as a container introduces a highly reflective metallic surface that presents one of the most technically demanding challenges in still life painting: the kettle's curved surface distorts and reflects the entire studio environment, requiring the painter to render not just the object itself but its complex reflective relationship with surrounding light. Bukowskis, founded in Stockholm, was a major conduit for Flemish and Dutch Old Masters entering Scandinavian collections from the late nineteenth century onward.

The copper kettle's surface requires Fyt to paint reflected light in a curved mirror — warm copper tones, distorted reflections of flowers and studio light, and the curved highlight that defines the kettle's form. Flower petals use thin, transparent glazes in the tradition of Flemish botanical still life. The asparagus introduces a pale green vertical element that contrasts with the rounded flower forms.