Still Life with Fruit

Severin Roesen, Still Life with Fruit, 1852, oil on canvas, 34 x 43 ⁷⁄₈ in. (86.5 x 111.5 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Maria Alice Murphy in memory of her brother Colonel Edward J. Murphy, Jr. and museum purchase through the Director’s Discretionary Fund, 1981.114

Free to use

Artwork Details

Title: Still Life with Fruit
Artist: Severin Roesen
Date: 1852
Location: Not on view
Dimensions: 34 x 43 ⁷⁄₈ in. (86.5 x 111.5 cm.)
Credit Line: Gift of Maria Alice Murphy in memory of her brother Colonel Edward J. Murphy, Jr. and museum purchase through the Director’s Discretionary Fund
Mediums: oil
Mediums Description: oil on canvas
Classifications: Painting
Subjects: Still life — fruit — apple
Still life — fruit — pineapple
Still life — fruit — grape
Still life — fruit — lemon
Still life — fruit — berry
Still life — other — container
Still life — other — dish
Still life — fruit — watermelon
Object Number: 1981.114
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1981.114

Artwork Description

Severin Roesen's still life celebrates an American harvest and the promise of more to come. The split pomegranate and half-eaten melon carry the seeds of next year's planting, while the glass of champagne invites a quiet moment of appreciation. Roesen was among many Germans who fled their country's political troubles of 1848. They brought with them a level of craftsmanship that found a ready market among Americans whose prosperity matched the natural abundance the artist captured here. These new Americans, whose dreams of democratic reform in Europe had been crushed, also brought to this country a liberal social conscience that played a significant role in the abolition of slavery.

Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006