Balthasar van der
Ast

Balthasar van der Ast (n. Balthasar van der Ast; ca. 1593, Middelburg - 1657, Delft) is a Dutch painter and draftsman.

After the death of his father in 1609, Balthazar moved to his older sister Maria, who was married to Ambrosius Boshart the Elder. In the early works of van der Asta, Boschart’s influence is clearly felt.

Since 1619 Baltazar van der Ast lived in Utrecht, where he was accepted into the guild of St.. Luke. It is supposed that Ian Davids de Hem studied under Asta.

Balthazar van der Ast died in December 1657 in Delft and was buried in the local church.

The first independent picture of Asta dates from 1610. First of all, he painted still lifes with flowers, insects, snails and fruits, the spatial location of which and the composition resemble the works of Jan Bruegel (1568-1625).