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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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    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.”

    Upcoming Exhibition:

    Little Beasts: Art, Wonder, and the Natural World

    Opens May 18

  • Art & Artists

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    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Games and Interactives
    • Educational Resources
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    Artle

    A refreshed experience for our puzzle game

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    Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 
    Admission is always free

    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.”

    Upcoming Exhibition:

    Little Beasts: Art, Wonder, and the Natural World

    Opens May 18

  • Art & Artists

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    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Games and Interactives
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    • Research

    Artle

    A refreshed experience for our puzzle game

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    Two women, a man, and three small children gather around a baby sleeping in a wicker cradle near an open window in this horizontal painting. The people all have pale skin with rosy cheeks. The cradle is just to left of center of the composition. It has a half canopy to shade the baby, and it sits on rockers. The baby sleeps with chubby arms over the covers tucked around the body. A woman sits on a low chest next to and on our side of the crib, near the lower left corner of the canvas. She has a prominent nose and jutting chin. She wears an oatmeal-brown bonnet and apron, and a muted red dress. She holds a staff with fabric or a spindle at the top tucked in one elbow, and the other hand rests on the canopy. A white cat lies like a loaf next to her feet. On the far side of the crib, a clean-shaven man kneels on a low platform covered by a pillow at the foot of the cradle and leans into the arms of a standing young woman. The man has a pointed nose and rounded chin, and he looks with heavy-lidded eyes at the baby. His long gray hair is tied at the nape of his neck, and he wears an ice-blue and tan long-tailed coat, breeches, and stockings. He rests one cheek against the arm of the woman who stands at his far shoulder. Her body faces the man, and she rests her other hand on his shoulder as she turns to look at the baby. A round, broad-brimmed hat casts a shadow over her delicate nose and round cheeks, and she wears a white dress with elbow-length sleeves and a full skirt. Three children stand behind the man’s feet and along the right edge of the canvas. The child closest to us has carrot-orange hair tied in a bun with a blue ribbon. She wears a white, puffy-sleeved shirt, and a parchment-white apron bunched over a pale pink skirt. She faces our left in profile, looking at the man, and holds one end of a ball of yarn that has rolled away from her. The boy behind her stands with his body facing us as he looks up and to our left. He wears a yellow jacket and a broad-brimmed hat pushed back on his head. Only the forehead and eyes of an even smaller child standing behind this pair are visible. Voluminous curtains part to either side of a window at the head of the cradle, near the upper left corner of the composition. An unlit lantern sits on the sill, and the sky beyond is dusk-blue. Bright light shines into the room, especially onto the man and woman and three children. A piece of furniture, perhaps a wardrobe, is on the far wall behind the woman, and the door to the room is open behind the children.
    Jean Honoré Fragonard, The Visit to the Nursery, c. 1775, oil on canvas, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1946.7.7

    The Visit to the Nursery

    The Visit to the Nursery

    Jean Honoré Fragonard · c. 1775 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1946.7.7

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