Paul Liégeois (active 17th century in Paris), Nature Morte Aux Fruits Et Orfèvrerie

Paul Liégeois (active in the 17th century in Paris),
Nature Morte Aux Fruits Et Orfèvrerie
Oil on canvas

Size: 86 x 123 cm
Size with frame: 101 x 138 cm

Reference:
Sotheby's, Tableaux Anciens sale, Paris, June 17, 2015, Lot 40: Still life by Paul Liégeois repeating our composition with a few modifications such as the color of the drapery, the piece of goldsmithery but it retains the silver dish, the knife and the general appearance of this work.

Artist and work:
Paul Liégeois was a painter active in France in the mid-17th century, belonging to that generation of artists who helped renew and affirm the still life in the French artistic landscape. He finely embodies the transition between the early compositions of the "Masters of Reality" - such as Jacques Linard or Louyse Moillon - and the more decorative works that would emerge at the end of the century, such as those by Pierre Dupuis.
The arrival of numerous Flemish and Dutch painters in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district of Paris encouraged a wide diffusion of the genre. Highly prized in northern countries, still life remained marginalized in France, where history painting, promoted by Charles Le Brun, remained at the top of the art hierarchy. This cosmopolitan artistic hotbed, right in the heart of the capital, gave rise to fertile exchanges between northern and French artists, and played a key role in the genre's evolution.
The work presented here is interesting because it marks the stylistic evolution of still life painting in 17th-century France, straddling two styles.
Its structure still bears witness to the influence of so-called "primitive" artists, with a composition arranged around an entablature running horizontally across the scene. However, it also reveals the artist's innovative contribution, enriching the traditional register by introducing precious elements in the lower part of the scene - such as the goldsmith's piece and the silver dish holding a melon. These refined details, treated with meticulous care, herald the future splendor of French still life painting with Monnoyer, and position Liégeois as one of the major artisans of this transformation.

Ref: YX135TBQ1M