Still Life with Fruit and Vegetables
1625–35
Frans Snyders (Flemish, 1579–1657)
Oil on canvas
The Norton Simon Foundation
Frans Snyders, a master of the Flemish Baroque still life, is renowned for his bold brushwork and monumental compositions. One of the themes of this painting, which likely depicts the larder of a fine house, is that of abundance—particularly as the idea relates to productivity and prosperity. Our first impression may be of a chaotic layering of produce—the fruits and vegetables on the table, in a bowl or basket, or on the ground. Closer inspection shows, however, in a manner that would be apparent to a 17th-century spectator, that the produce is arranged in a hierarchy reflecting value and rarity. Root vegetables are picturesquely arranged on the ground, whereas highly prized peas and asparagus are placed in the basket at right.
In this collaboration, Snyders painted the still-life elements, and his brother-in-law, the portrait painter Cornelis de Vos, painted the figures. The interaction of the boy and the woman through touch and gaze and the inclusion of live animals enhances the sense of animation. The painting certainly resonates with allusions to all five senses.
Prior to becoming part of the Norton Simon collections, this painting was one of four large market and larder scenes painted by Snyders and installed in the state dining room of the dukes of Newcastle at their estate in Clumber Park, Nottinghamshire.
Plant Identification Guide: Frans Snyders’s Still Life with Fruit and Vegetables
Featured in the exhibition All Consuming: Art and the Essence of Food (2023), organized by Associate Curator Maggie Bell, Frans Synders’s epic painting of produce depicted with scientific accuracy inspired public programming, an online video tour and a plant identification guide. Bell collaborated with Sean Lahmeyer, Associate Director of Botanical Collections, Conservation and Research at the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, to identify the nuts, tree fruits and vegetables in this work. Lahmeyer noticed that the items portrayed in the still life ripen in different seasons, indicating that, despite the painting’s naturalism, Snyders invented this scene of fantastic abundance. Senior Graphic Designer Jennifer Johnson made a virtual and printable guide to help visitors identify each type of produce, from hazelnut to cardoon.
