Edmond Van Coppenolle was born in Ghent, Belgium, in 1846. He moved to Montigny, close to Moret-sur-Loing in France to work at the newly opened Schopin porcelain factory. Here he produced sketches and studies in Indian ink, wash and crayon of poultry which were used for the decoration on the porcelain. He married and shortly afterwards moved into a vast studio in the Grande-Rue.

Coppenolle was renowned for his oil paintings of flowers. Although influenced by the 17th century painters of the Netherlands he was also aware of the growing fashion in France for garden flowers and more natural-looking flower paintings. Coppenolle painted many of his floral paintings with a free-flowing composition full of life and colour. This which was...