Still Life--Writing Table.
Title |
Still Life--Writing Table. |
Creator |
Harnett, William Michael (American painter, 1848-1892) |
Date |
1877 |
Cultural Context |
American North American |
Subject |
Still lifes Business & finance Tables Books Encyclopedias & dictionaries Geography Money Coins Greenbacks Correspondence Pens Writing materials Envelopes |
Description |
“In The Writing Table, eight meticulously described items are arranged on a cool green trompe-l’oeiled marble slab: a hefty leather-bound tome; a small shiny gold or copper coin; a sparkling silver coin; a roll of well-worn five-dollar bills; a folded, handwritten letter; a quill pen; a postmarked envelope; and a smudged ink pot. What is readable of the letter suggests business correspondence, which can be pieced together thus: “received you[r] … early part of last mo[nth] and was extremely glad to hear that [yo]u had succe[ss] reflecting ….” The book, a geographical index, is entitled U.S. Gazetteer, Vol. II. Artfully balanced and monumentally scaled, all the objects in this small painting–cash, correspondence, writing tools, geographic directory–come together to suggest a world of business. Moreover, a world of business that is carefully ordered, solid, experienced, and useful.” (excerpt, pp.278, 280) |
Material |
Oil on canvas Oil paint (pigmented coating) Paint Canvas |
Measurements |
8 x 12 in |
Technique |
Oil painting (technique) Painting (image-making) |
Inscription |
Lower left corner of tabletop: artist's signature. |
Work Type |
Paintings Oil paintings Still life paintings Still lifes |
Repository |
Philadelphia Museum of Art (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) |
Source |
Lubin, David M. Picturing a Nation: Art and Social Change in Nineteenth-Century America. New Haven: Yale UP, 1994. (fig.155, p.279) |
Rights |
Photo/illustration credit/reproduced in Lubin courtesy: Philadelphia Museum of Art. Alex Simpson, Jr., Collection. |
Digital Publisher |
University of Louisville Department of Fine Arts/Allen R. Hite Art Institute Visual Resources Center |
Format |
image/jpeg |
Digital File Name |
VRC 1269-32.jpg |
Rating |
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