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The painting is signed in the right foreground but left undated. A variety of compositional elements, however, place it in the 1860s, the period the artist was working in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The curved marble table, elegant pale blue embroidered drapery, and the bird’s nest are common motifs found in other works from the Williamsport period. Particular groupings of flowers are also mirrored in other canvases from this time. [1]
This arrangement in its entirety could not have been assembled as depicted. The flowers bloom in different seasons; the hollyhocks of summer grouped with tulips of spring are a clear indication of the artist’s imaginative synthesis. The painting is a departure from the intricate symbolism of Dutch still life, in which every flower contains a message or meaning. Yet, Roesen does include clear references to fertility in this image: the ripe fruit, eggs, and abundant flowers are all symbols of life and renewal. Probably painted after the Civil War, it is possible that these allude to regeneration and rebirth. This message of hope would have appealed to the popular sentiments of the time.
Notes:
[1] Judith H. O'Toole, Severin Roesen (Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press, 1992), 49–51.
ProvenanceVan Wyck Hall, Fishkill, NY [1]
Hirschl & Adler Galleries, Inc., New York, NY [2]
To 1997
Barbara B. Millhouse [3]
From 1997
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Winston-Salem, NC, given by Barbara B. Millhouse on December 18, 1997. [4]
Notes:
[1] Wolfgang Born, Still-Life Painting in America, New York: Oxford University Press, 1947, no. 63.
[2] Memo to file, March 2, 1994.
[3] See note 2.
[4] Deed of Gift, December 18, 1997.
Exhibition History1981-1982
Painters of The Humble Truth: American Still Life Painting
Philbrook Art Center, Tulsa, OK (9/27/1981-7/4/1982)
1988
Penn’s Promise: Still Life Painting in Pennsylvania, 1795-1930
Westmorland Museum of Art, Greensburg, PA (5/29/1988-7/31/1988)
Published ReferencesBorn, Wolfgang. Still-Life Painting in America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1947: no. 63.
Marcus, Lois Goldreich. Severin Roesen: A Chronology. Pennsylvania: Lycoming County Historical Society and Museum, 1976: 51.
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Reynolda: Her Muses, Her Stories , with contributions by Martha R. Severens and David Park Curry (Winston-Salem, N.C.: Reynolda House Museum of American Art affiliated with Wake Forest University, 2017). pg 228, 229
DepartmentAmerican Art
Flowers in a Glass Pitcher with Bird's Nest and Fruit
Artist
Severin Roesen
(c. 1816 - 1872)
Datecirca 1867
Mediumoil on canvas
DimensionsFrame: 58 1/4 x 43 7/8 in. (148 x 111.4 cm)
Canvas: 50 3/8 x 36 1/8 in. (128 x 91.8 cm)
SignedS. Roesen
Credit LineGift of Barbara B. Millhouse
CopyrightPublic Domain
Object number1992.2.1
DescriptionFlowers in a Glass Pitcher with Bird's Nest and Fruit depicts a profusion of cut flowers painted in realistic detail against an ambiguous dark background. The glass urn, which holds the arrangement sits atop a curved gray marble table. In front rests a bird’s nest with three small white eggs, whose oblong shape is mirrored in the form of the vase. To the right, a lush assortment of ripened fruit lies on a decorative drape that hangs over the tabletop. The painting is signed in the right foreground but left undated. A variety of compositional elements, however, place it in the 1860s, the period the artist was working in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The curved marble table, elegant pale blue embroidered drapery, and the bird’s nest are common motifs found in other works from the Williamsport period. Particular groupings of flowers are also mirrored in other canvases from this time. [1]
This arrangement in its entirety could not have been assembled as depicted. The flowers bloom in different seasons; the hollyhocks of summer grouped with tulips of spring are a clear indication of the artist’s imaginative synthesis. The painting is a departure from the intricate symbolism of Dutch still life, in which every flower contains a message or meaning. Yet, Roesen does include clear references to fertility in this image: the ripe fruit, eggs, and abundant flowers are all symbols of life and renewal. Probably painted after the Civil War, it is possible that these allude to regeneration and rebirth. This message of hope would have appealed to the popular sentiments of the time.
Notes:
[1] Judith H. O'Toole, Severin Roesen (Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press, 1992), 49–51.
ProvenanceVan Wyck Hall, Fishkill, NY [1]
Hirschl & Adler Galleries, Inc., New York, NY [2]
To 1997
Barbara B. Millhouse [3]
From 1997
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Winston-Salem, NC, given by Barbara B. Millhouse on December 18, 1997. [4]
Notes:
[1] Wolfgang Born, Still-Life Painting in America, New York: Oxford University Press, 1947, no. 63.
[2] Memo to file, March 2, 1994.
[3] See note 2.
[4] Deed of Gift, December 18, 1997.
Exhibition History1981-1982
Painters of The Humble Truth: American Still Life Painting
Philbrook Art Center, Tulsa, OK (9/27/1981-7/4/1982)
1988
Penn’s Promise: Still Life Painting in Pennsylvania, 1795-1930
Westmorland Museum of Art, Greensburg, PA (5/29/1988-7/31/1988)
Published ReferencesBorn, Wolfgang. Still-Life Painting in America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1947: no. 63.
Marcus, Lois Goldreich. Severin Roesen: A Chronology. Pennsylvania: Lycoming County Historical Society and Museum, 1976: 51.
Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Reynolda: Her Muses, Her Stories , with contributions by Martha R. Severens and David Park Curry (Winston-Salem, N.C.: Reynolda House Museum of American Art affiliated with Wake Forest University, 2017). pg 228, 229
Status
On viewCollections
1920s
1917-1918