HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RAPHAELLE PEALE—BORN FEBRUARY 17, 1774
Raphaelle Peale (1774-1825) may not have the name recognition of other figures in American art like Winslow Homer, Mary Cassatt, or Andrew Wyeth, but his still lifes have an unforgettable realism combined with a sense of poetry. His subjects are usually food plus drink, displayed with a variety of dishes and glasses, enabling the viewer in 2025 to share in everyday life during the first half of the nineteenth century.
Yet, do you find Still Life–Strawberries, Nuts, & c.below appetizing? Would you like a taste of the luscious red strawberries or crunch on the round, yellow piece of fruit, or crack one of the brownish colored nuts spilling over the bowl? How about the elegant creamer and sugar bowl? Or the tall jar, part of its surface reflecting in the dark. Each object arranged carefully by the artist to create an overall aesthetic impression.
Raphaelle Peale, Still Life–Strawberries, Nuts, & c., 1822, oil on wood panel, Gift of James J. and Marshall Field, Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois
Or perhaps you would prefer a sip of sherry, just recently poured? Peale includes apples again, but not as formally placed as in the previous painting, along with a tea cake, delicately iced with a leaf pattern.
Raphaelle Peale, Still Life with Apples, Sherry, and Tea Cake, 1822, oil on wood, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
However, in Still Life with Cake, the raisin cakes are the center attraction, already cut and ready to be eaten. Then washed down with sherry or wine nearby.
Raphaelle Peale, Still Life with Cake, 1818, oil on wood, Maria De Witt Jesup Fund, 1959, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
To learn more about Raphaelle Peale, just click on an earlier blog:
Still Life–Strawberries, Nuts, & c.
CCO Public Domain Designation
The Art Institute of Chicago does not endorse or approve use of the above image or any of the material on this website. Nor has the Art Institute of Chicago participated in any projects utilizing the said image.
Still Life with Apples, Sherry, and Tea Cake
In the public domain, courtesy of the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
The National Gallery of Art does not endorse or approve use of the above image or any of the material on this website. Nor has the National Gallery of Art participated in any projects utilizing the said image.
Still Life with Cake
In the public domain. As part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify, and distribute this image even for commercial purposes.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art does not endorse or approve use of the above image or any of the material on this website. Nor has the Metropolitan Museum of Art participated in any projects utilizing the said image.
