A Life in Light and Petals

Born in Bergen op Zoom in 1871, Lucie van Dam van Isselt moved through the world with a keen eye for the delicate and the small. Her formal training began at the Royal Academy of Visual Arts in The Hague, but her artistic curiosity eventually led her to the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Lyon. There, under the guidance of Auguste Morisot, she mastered the precise disciplines of etching and lithography. This technical foundation would later support a career defined by varied subjects, from portraits and landscapes to the quiet intimacy of still lifes.

Her personal history was marked by shifts in both residence and name. Following her marriage to the painter Evert Cornelis Ekker in 1892, she lived through periods of domesticity that would later give way to a fierce independence. After their divorce in 1907, she sought refuge in Veere, a town in Zeeland that became central to her identity. It was here that she joined the group known as the Veerse Joffers, establishing herself as an artist capable of sustaining her own livelihood through her craft.

The Spirit of Veere

In the bright light of Zeeland, Lucie found a specific clarity of vision. The landscape and atmosphere of Veere influenced her preference for certain tones, particularly bright grays and whites. She was encouraged during this period by the Flemish luminist Théo van Rysselberghe, whose presence in the area prompted her to expand her repertoire beyond oil and watercolor into the realm of etching. Her work often captured a sense of quietude, whether through the depiction of cityscapes or the recurring, tender subject of little girls.

Her later years saw a move back to The Hague in 1933. Despite the complexities of her personal life—including a second marriage to the art critic Albert Charles Auguste Plasschaert that ended in 1921—her dedication to the botanical subject remained steadfast. A trip to Italy left a lasting impression on her approach to floral painting, inspired by the way she observed classical depictions of flora. She sought to capture the texture and atmospheric weight of a bouquet with a focus on the physical reality of the petals and stems.

Technical Breadth and Subject Matter

The breadth of her output reflected a disciplined hand capable of navigating many mediums. Her studio work included:

• Oil paint on panel, used for more substantial still lifes and portraits.
• Watercolor and drawing, often employed for her more intimate studies of children and nature.
• Etching and lithography, techniques refined during her studies in Lyon.

Her subject matter was never limited to a single theme, though she is frequently remembered for her floral arrangements. She painted everything from a bird's nest against a Dutch background to kitchen scenes featuring grapes and pears. Even in her more structured compositions, such as A still life with a lacquer stamp and a candle, there is a focus on the interplay of light and shadow. She passed away in The Hague in 1949, leaving behind a body of work that remains held in collections such as the Teylers Museum and the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.