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    A sprig of flowering rosemary lying against an ivory-white background and the twelve insects that surround it fills this horizontal painting. Stretching nearly the length of the composition with the cut end to our left, the rosemary has blunted, needle-like, gently curling teal-green leaves and small periwinkle-blue flowers along the ash-brown stem. Several insects perch on the sprig while others are seen as if looking from overhead, resting on the white background. The three largest insects perch along the top of the sprig, with an ivory-white butterfly with moss-green and black markings to the left, a black and golden, fuzzy bumblebee near the center, and a lemon-yellow butterfly with red antennae to our right. A tiny red insect, perhaps a ladybug without spots, sits on a leaf between the bee and yellow butterfly, and a small wasp-like insect rests on a leaf in at the lower left. Another mosquito-like insect alights on the surface nearby, next to a beetle with a honey-orange body with black, almost tiger-like stripes. A large cockroach sitting near the lower right corner has six spindly legs, a mahogany-colored abdomen, a black thorax, and tiny, black head. Spaced somewhat evenly across the top of the panel are a brick-red, winged insect to the left, a mint-green, beetle-like bug near a moth patterned with bone white and black, and a black, fly-like insect to our right. Lit from the upper left, the rosemary and insects cast shadows on the surface. The artist signed and dated the work with gray in the lower left corner: “J v. kessel . . f. Ao 1653.”

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    Only have an hour to spend?

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  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
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    A sprig of flowering rosemary lying against an ivory-white background and the twelve insects that surround it fills this horizontal painting. Stretching nearly the length of the composition with the cut end to our left, the rosemary has blunted, needle-like, gently curling teal-green leaves and small periwinkle-blue flowers along the ash-brown stem. Several insects perch on the sprig while others are seen as if looking from overhead, resting on the white background. The three largest insects perch along the top of the sprig, with an ivory-white butterfly with moss-green and black markings to the left, a black and golden, fuzzy bumblebee near the center, and a lemon-yellow butterfly with red antennae to our right. A tiny red insect, perhaps a ladybug without spots, sits on a leaf between the bee and yellow butterfly, and a small wasp-like insect rests on a leaf in at the lower left. Another mosquito-like insect alights on the surface nearby, next to a beetle with a honey-orange body with black, almost tiger-like stripes. A large cockroach sitting near the lower right corner has six spindly legs, a mahogany-colored abdomen, a black thorax, and tiny, black head. Spaced somewhat evenly across the top of the panel are a brick-red, winged insect to the left, a mint-green, beetle-like bug near a moth patterned with bone white and black, and a black, fly-like insect to our right. Lit from the upper left, the rosemary and insects cast shadows on the surface. The artist signed and dated the work with gray in the lower left corner: “J v. kessel . . f. Ao 1653.”

    Featured exhibition:

    Little Beasts: Art, Wonder, and the Natural World

    Now on view

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    Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 
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    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    Only have an hour to spend?

    We've got you covered.

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events
    A sprig of flowering rosemary lying against an ivory-white background and the twelve insects that surround it fills this horizontal painting. Stretching nearly the length of the composition with the cut end to our left, the rosemary has blunted, needle-like, gently curling teal-green leaves and small periwinkle-blue flowers along the ash-brown stem. Several insects perch on the sprig while others are seen as if looking from overhead, resting on the white background. The three largest insects perch along the top of the sprig, with an ivory-white butterfly with moss-green and black markings to the left, a black and golden, fuzzy bumblebee near the center, and a lemon-yellow butterfly with red antennae to our right. A tiny red insect, perhaps a ladybug without spots, sits on a leaf between the bee and yellow butterfly, and a small wasp-like insect rests on a leaf in at the lower left. Another mosquito-like insect alights on the surface nearby, next to a beetle with a honey-orange body with black, almost tiger-like stripes. A large cockroach sitting near the lower right corner has six spindly legs, a mahogany-colored abdomen, a black thorax, and tiny, black head. Spaced somewhat evenly across the top of the panel are a brick-red, winged insect to the left, a mint-green, beetle-like bug near a moth patterned with bone white and black, and a black, fly-like insect to our right. Lit from the upper left, the rosemary and insects cast shadows on the surface. The artist signed and dated the work with gray in the lower left corner: “J v. kessel . . f. Ao 1653.”

    Featured exhibition:

    Little Beasts: Art, Wonder, and the Natural World

    Now on view

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    3. Alfred Jacob Miller

    Alfred Jacob Miller

    American, 1810 - 1874

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    Twelve people standing and on horseback talk and gesticulate in a tight group around a wagon outside a house in this horizontal painting. The scene is loosely painted and in darker tones so some details are difficult to make out. The people all appear to be men and have light- or medium-toned skin. In the group close to us, on the far left, a man wearing an olive-green jacket, a brimmed hat with a flat crown, and a curving horn hanging from a strap across his back sits on a brown horse that faces away from us. The rider leans to the right and raises a whip in that hand. The next man stands facing away from us, wearing a pale hat, teal-green jacket, and brown pants. One hand rests on a cane and the other is held up, perhaps to hide his face. He stands next to a white horse with a rider wearing a red shirt and brimmed hat. Facing us, the rider smiles as he leans forward to read a paper braced against the horse’s mane. A brown dog with white markings on its forehead and chest sits on the ground between the two horses, facing the horse on the left. To our right of the white horse, a standing man wears a gold-colored, thigh-length coat that flutters open over an open-necked white shirt. A red sash is tied around his waist, and he wears silvery-white pants and brown boots. He leans his weight onto one foot and holds up a paper with his other hand. In front of him and a little further to our right, two standing men talk. The first in this pair faces us with his feet widely planted, wearing a light blue jacket and red cap. He smiles up toward a taller companion, who smiles back. The second man in this pair wears an olive-green, thigh-length coat and white cap. One hand is planted on his hip, so his elbow points toward us. To our right and farther back a man in a brick-red jacket sits astride a barrel, facing toward the center. Behind the groups described, four men sit or stand on a wagon so they appear above the people standing on the ground. A fifth man next to the wagon reaches for or hands up a basket to another. Beyond these groups and on the far right, a low wooden fence opens into a yard with a sign on a tall post in front of a house a short distance away. At least three brown-skinned people wearing white, tan, and muted brown stand together in the yard and more people may be gathered closer to the house. Some pebbles and tufts of grass are spaced across the dirt ground underfoot, and clouds above are shaded with faint gray or pale, shell peach against a blue sky. The artist signed the painting with the letters AJM overlapping in a monogram in the lower right corner.
    Alfred Jacob Miller, Election Scene, Catonsville, Baltimore County, c. 1860, oil on academy board, Corcoran Collection (Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Lansdell K. Christie), 2014.79.26

    Election Scene, Catonsville, Baltimore County

    Election Scene, Catonsville, Baltimore County

    Alfred Jacob Miller · c. 1860 · oil on academy board ·  Accession ID  2014.79.26

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