Abraham Mignon or Minjon (21 June 1640 - 27 March 1679), was
a Dutch golden age painter, specialized in flower bouquets.
Mignon was born at Frankfurt. His father, a merchant, placed
him under the care of the still-life painter Jacob Marrel, when he was only
seven years old. Marrel specialized in flower painting, and found him to be his
best pupil. He accompanied Mignon when he moved to the Netherlands about 1660
to work under Jan Davidszoon de Heem at Utrecht. In 1675 he settled there
permanently and married the daughter of the painter Cornelis Willaerts
(granddaughter of Adam Willaerts). He died at Utrecht.
Mignon devoted himself almost exclusively to painting
stilleben of flowers, fruit, birds and other still-life, though at times he
also attempted portraiture. His flower pieces are marked by careful finish and
delicate handling. His favourite scheme was to introduce red or white roses in
the centre of the canvas and to set the whole group of flowers against a dark
background.
Nowhere can his work be seen to better advantage than at the
Dresden Gallery, which contains fifteen of his paintings, twelve of which are
signed. Six of his pictures are at the Louvre, four at the Hermitage, and other
examples are to be found at the museums of Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam,
Brussels, Munich, Karlsruhe, Brunswick, Kassel, Schwerin, Copenhagen