Still Life with Fruit, Fish, and a Nest
c. 1675
Artist, German, 1640 - 1679

The forest backdrop in this work—so dark that it nearly conceals a stone archway—emphasizes Abraham Mignon’s expressive use of light, which imparts a richness to his colors and forms. The fishing rod, bait box, and bundle of freshly caught fish next to the wicker basket overflowing with fruit and vegetables all evoke the bounty of the water and the land. The assembled objects furthermore form an allegory on the cycles of life. The eggs in the bird’s nest presage birth; the open blossoms and ripe fruits suggest maturity; and the gnarled tree stump denotes old age. Ultimately, the inevitability of death is conveyed by the ants eating the fish and a dead lizard in the foreground. The wheat stalks and grapes offer salvation by symbolizing Jesus' blessing of bread and wine at the Last Supper.
Mignon’s stunning array of textures certainly validates an early biographer’s observation that the artist was "especially diligent." After training in his native Germany, Mignon moved to Utrecht where he probably worked in the studio of Jan Davidsz de Heem (1606–1684), who resided in Utrecht from 1667 to 1672, before returning to Antwerp. Mignon consequently adopted De Heem's "Flemish" taste for rich color and complex design.
Artwork overview
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Medium
oil on canvas
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Credit Line
-
Dimensions
overall: 94 x 73.5 cm (37 x 28 15/16 in.)
framed: 117.5 x 98.4 x 5.1 cm (46 1/4 x 38 3/4 x 2 in.) -
Accession
1989.23.1
More About this Artwork
Artwork history & notes
Provenance
Private collection, England. private collection, Switzerland; (Peter Tillou Works of Art, Litchfield, Connecticut); purchased May 1986 by Mr. and Mrs. H. John Heinz III, Washington, D.C.;[1] gift (partial and promised) 1989 to NGA; gift completed 1992.
[1] Provenance information was provided by Diane Martz, with the Heinz collection, in e-mails to Arthur Wheelock of 7 and 10 September 2012 (in NGA curatorial files). She writes in her first message that in the papers of Ingvar Bergstrom, who catalogued the Heinz collection, "there is a version of a certification for the picture that lists a private English collection as provenance."
Associated Names
Exhibition History
1989
Still Lifes of the Golden Age: Northern European Paintings from the Heinz Family Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1989, no. 28.
1996
Obras Maestras de la National Gallery of Art de Washington, Museo Nacional de Antropología, Mexico City, 1996-1997, unnumbered catalogue, 74-75, color repro.
1997
Rembrandt and the Golden Age: Dutch Paintings from the National Gallery of Art, The Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, 1997, unnumbered brochure.
2006
Loan to display with permanent collection, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, 2006-2007, unnumbered brochure, fig. 3.
Bibliography
1989
Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr., and Ingvar Bergström , eds. Still Lifes of the Golden Age: Northern European Paintings from the Heinz Family Collection. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Washington, 1989: no. 28, color repro. 75.
1995
Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, 1995: 174-176, color repro. 177.
2006
Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. . In Celebration of Jan Davidsz. de Heem’s Still-Life with Grapes. Exhibition brochure. Hood Museum of Art, Hanover, 2006: fig. 3.
2007
Kraemer-Noble, Magdalena. Abraham Mignon, 1640-1679: catalogue raisonné. Studien zur internationalen Architektur- und Kunstgeschichte, vol. 44. Petersberg, 2007: 35, 38, 130, 132, 288 n. 12, as a 17th century copy by an unknown artist.
Wikidata ID
Q20177660