Fruit and Insects

Form

• Still lifes inform
  • Valued for their extreme realism
• Emphasis on implied texture
• Results of lots of observations put together
• All made of wood

Function

• Tenebrian prince Johann Wilhelm
• Capturing the natural world
• Statement of status
• Middle class desired new subjects
• Wanted genres to reflect their successes
• Not a strong sense of religious or political art
• Vanitas’ are fleeing from the art scene and flower iconography
• Flowers have a shortness of life which reminded Dutch consumers to not be too attached to their wealthy possessions
• Harvest is the theme
• Christians saw wheat and grapes as a eucharist and wine
  • Seeing this as an excess
• Display of iconography for the viewer

Context

• Still life was the first genre students wanted to do
• Women were only allowed to to Still Lifes because it was seen as a hobby for women and not a profession
  • Called “Lady painters” which reinforces misogyny
  • Taught by their fathers and husbands
  • Not allowed in the French academy at the time
• Had 10 children and 250+ paintings
• Court painter for eight years
• Grew up with a botanist father, his specimens helped her in her studies
• Her works sold for double of Rembrandt’s works
• Had an interest in exotic plants and flowers: Tulip Mania

Learning Objective

18th c. Late Baroque (Dutch) still life

Themes

• Still life
• Nature
• Science
• Status
• Religion
• Iconography