Background
He was the son of the decorative painter January van Huysum I and the brother of the engraver Caspar van Huysum.
He was the son of the decorative painter January van Huysum I and the brother of the engraver Caspar van Huysum.
The elder January van Huysum moved to Amsterdam from Huizum (near Leeuwarden) between 1654 and 1657, where his boys Justus and Caspar were born. According to Houbraken, when Justus came of age, his father sent him to learn painting from Nicolaes Berchem in 1675. Houbraken said he was very good at all sorts of painting, but excelled at flower painting, and founded a family business in painting flowers in vases.