A Space of Their Own

Alida Withoos

ca. 1661/62 – 1730

Active in: The Netherlands

Biography

Alida Withoos achieved acclaim in her lifetime for her botanical illustrations. Born in Amersfoort in 1661 or 1662, she was the daughter of the still life painter Matthias Withoos, who taught her to paint. A number of her siblings were active as botanical artists, and in collectors’ inventories, their works were often described as Withoosjes. She died in 1730.

Selected Works

A branch of a plant with a red stem, pointed medium-green leaves, and small red berries.

Alida Withoos, Branch of a Redcurrant, n.d. Watercolor, 33.6 x 22.2 cm. Rijksmuseum

A branch of plant with green stem, dark green ruffled leaves, and many small yellow flowers at the top.

Alida Withoos, Brassica, ca. 1714. Watercolor, 31.8 x 19.7 cm. Rijksmuseum

A plant with a light green stem, many narrow oval leaves arranged in circles on smaller stalks, and small white and pink flowers at the top of the branch.

Alida Withoos, Lupine, n.d. Watercolor, 38.3 x 25 cm. Rijksmuseum

A plant with a dark green stem, a few pointed oval leaves at the bottom, and downward-facing, dark purple flowers with long yellow stamens at the top of the stem.

Alida Withoos, Martagon Lily, n.d. Watercolor, 40.5 x 25 cm. Rijksmuseum

A plant with a curving, medium-green stem, pointed light green leaves, and fuzzy-looking, trumpet shaped flowers at the end of the stem.

Alida Withoos, Study of a Hanekam (Celosia argentea), n.d. Watercolor, 36.9 x 24.1 cm. Metropolitan Museum of Art

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Selected works
 

Circle

Daughter of
Matthias Withoos

Wife of
Andries Cornelisz van Dalen

Sister of
Pieter Withoos

Bibliography

A Checklist of Painters, ca. 1200–1994, Represented in the Witt Library, Courtauld Institute of Art, London. London: Mansell, 1995.

“Alida Withoos.” RKD. https://rkd.nl/explore/artists/85141.

Buvelot, Quentin, et al. Tableaux flamands et hollandaise de Musée Fabre de Montpellier. Paris, 1998.

De Belder, Jan. “A Curiosity Cabinet.” Bulletin of the Botanical Gardens/Bulletin van de Botanische Tuinen 13 (1984): 6–13.

Heijenga-Klomp, M. W. “Matthias Withoos (about 1672–1703) and His Children. An Amersfoort Painters’ Family, Flehite.” Historical Yearbook for Amersfoort and Environs (2005): 108–31.

Klarenbeek, Hanna. Penseelprinsessen & broodschilderessen: vrouwen in de beeldende kunst 1808–1913. Bussum: Thoth, 2012.

Kloek, Els, Catherine Peters Sengers, and Esther Tobé. Lexicon van Noord-Nederlandse kunstenaressen, circa 1550–1800. Hilversum: Verloren, 1998.

Kok, Jacobus. Vaderlandsch woordenboek. Amsterdam, 1794.

Missel, Liesbeth. De wereld van Alida Withoos, een webtentonnstelling. Wageningen, 2000.

Pairet, Montserrat Cabré, et al. Maria Sybilla Merian y Alida Withoos: Mujeres, arte y ciencia en la edad Moderna. Universidad de Cantabria, 2018.

Schepper, M. “Matthias Withoos, a versatile talent.” Unpublished thesis, Nijmegen, 1990.

Thieme, Ulrich, and Felix Becker. Allgemeines Lexikon der bildenden Künstler: von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart. Leipzig: Seemann, 1907–50.

Van der Stighelen, Katlijne, Mirjam Westen, and Maaike Meijer, eds. Elck zijn waerom: vrouwelijke kunstenaars in België en Nederland 1500–1950. Ghent: Ludion, 1999.

Van der Willigen, Adriaan, and Fred Meijer. A Dictionary of Dutch and Flemish Still-Life Painters Working in Oils: 1525–1725. Leiden: Primavera, 2003.

Wijnands, D. Onno. The Botany of the Commelins. Rotterdam: Wageningen, 1983.

“Withoos, Alida.” Oxford Art Online. https://doi-org.proxyiub.uits.iu.edu/10.1093/benz/9780199773787.article.B00198205.

Entry Notes

Contributions to timeline and bibliography provided by Indiana University A300 student Moriah Kaiser