Artwork
Still Life with Apples, Pears, Cucumbers, Figs, Plums, and a Melon
Still Life with Apples, Pears, Cucumbers, Figs, Plums, and a Melon is an oil painting by the Baroque artist Fede Galizia. It dates from 1628 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Fede Galizia, an Italian painter active in the early 17th century, produced this oil on panel still life around 1628. The work presents a tabletop arrangement of summer fruit—apples, pears, cucumbers, figs, plums and a melon—set against a dark backdrop that heightens the vivid greens, reds and yellows of the produce. It is part of the National Gallery of Art’s collection in Washington.
Subject & Meaning
The composition gathers a variety of seasonal fruits, each rendered with careful attention to texture and form. By juxtaposing the smoothness of the melon rind with the fuzz of figs and the crispness of apples, the painting celebrates the abundance of nature and the tactile qualities of everyday objects, reflecting a growing interest in materiality during the period.
Technique & Style
Galizia employed fine, almost stippled brushwork to delineate the surface of each fruit, achieving a convincing sense of three‑dimensionality. The chiaroscuro of the dark background against the illuminated fruit aligns with early Baroque sensibilities, emphasizing naturalistic detail while maintaining a balanced, harmonious arrangement.
History & Provenance
Created in the 1620s, the painting emerged at a time when still‑life subjects were gaining acceptance in Italian art circles, particularly in Milan where Galizia worked. It entered the National Gallery of Art’s holdings in Washington, where it remains on display as part of the museum’s European paintings collection.
Artist & collection
Artist
Fede Galizia (c. 1578 – c. 1630) was an Italian painter of still-lifes, portraits, and religious pictures. She is especially noted as a painter of still-lifes of fruit, a genre in which she was one of the earliest…
