| Artist | |
|---|---|
| Culture | Netherlandish |
| Date | ca. 1647 |
| Object type | painting |
| Medium, technique | oil on oak |
| Dimensions | 43 x 59.6 cm |
| Signature | Signed upper left: J de Heem f. |
| Inventory number | 3538 |
| Collection | Old Master Paintings |
| On view | This artwork is not on display |
Jan Davidsz. de Heem was born in the Dutch Republic, but moved to Antwerp as a young man, and in Flanders he incorporated new influences into his painting style. As the inventor of the socalled pronk (splendid) still life, he became one of the most influential painters of the period. Besides his large, elegant, brightly-coloured fruit and flower compositions, in the 1640s he also painted numerous smaller works. In this painting, the fruit seem to glisten against the dark background. The orderly pyramidal composition is enlivened by the curling lemon peel and the diagonally twisting leaf tendrils. De Heem strove for almost palpable verisimilitude when painting his still lifes, as exemplified here by the gelatinous moistness of the oysters and the rough skin of the lemons.
Pigler, Andor, Katalog der Galerie Alter Meister, 1-2. Museum der Bildenden Künste, Szépművészeti Múzeum, Budapest. 2, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1967, p. 304.
This record is subject to revision due to ongoing research.
