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National Gallery of Art

  • Visit

    • Plan Your Visit
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Food and Drink
    • Tours and Guides
    • Explore the Campus

    Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
    Admission is always free

    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

    Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights

    Starting June 3

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events

    Featured event:

    Block Party

    Join us June 6

  • Art & Artists

    • Artworks
    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Fun and Games
    • Educational Resources
    • Research

    Open Call

    Artists Reimagining the Collection

    Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Utility

  • Support
  • Shop
  • Become a Member

  • Visit

    • Plan Your Visit
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Food and Drink
    • Tours and Guides
    • Explore the Campus

    Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
    Admission is always free

    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

    Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights

    Starting June 3

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events

    Featured event:

    Block Party

    Join us June 6

  • Art & Artists

    • Artworks
    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Fun and Games
    • Educational Resources
    • Research

    Open Call

    Artists Reimagining the Collection

    Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Utility

  • Support
  • Shop
  • Become a Member

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  • Open 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
  • See extended hours

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    3. Luis Meléndez

    Luis Meléndez

    Spanish, 1715 - 1780

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    Artwork

    A dish of about two dozen figs, a crusty loaf of bread, a tall, black flask, and two wooden vessels are closely gathered on a wooden table or ledge in this vertical still life painting. At the front right, the figs are either deep purple or pale green. The shallow, pale lavender-gray dish in which they are piled has a narrow, scalloped edge. The round loaf of golden-brown bread, with its split top, sits behind and to our left of the figs. In the lower left corner, next to the figs and closest to us, the handle of a knife projects toward us. Its pewter-colored blade angles back away from us. Beyond the bread is a wide-bellied, black, long-necked bottle with a cork. White reflections of windows out of our view to our left glint on the shiny, inky surface. Next to it, to our right, a small wooden barrel is about the size of an American football. At the back right, the cylindrical neck of a copper vessel pokes out of a pile of pale ice shavings, all within a keg-like bucket. The still life is set against a dark brown background.
    Luis Meléndez, Still Life with Figs and Bread, c. 1770, oil on canvas, Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2000.6.1

    Still Life with Figs and Bread

    Still Life with Figs and Bread

    Luis Meléndez · c. 1770 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  2000.6.1

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