Attributed to George Whitaker (American, 1840–1916), "Still Life of Fruit"

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Still Life With Pineapple, Grapes, And Cut-Glass Compote
Attributed to George Whitaker (American, 1840–1916)

Attributed to George Whitaker (American, 1840–1916), … Read more Still Life With Pineapple, Grapes, And Cut-Glass Compote
Attributed to George Whitaker (American, 1840–1916)

Attributed to George Whitaker (American, 1840–1916), this richly composed still life presents an abundant arrangement of fruit clustered across a tabletop and set against a deep, atmospheric ground. At center, a cut-glass compote rises on a faceted stem and is filled to the brim with pale and wine-dark grapes, its bowl encircled by a crisply painted Greek key border that adds a classical decorative note. Around it, the artist builds a densely layered still life of pineapple, pears, peaches, plums, and cascading grape clusters, carefully balanced to form a stable, pyramidal composition that draws the eye from the weighty fruit forms upward into the shadowed backdrop.

Whitaker’s handling emphasizes surface and structure: the waxy bloom on grapes, the velvety softness of stone fruit, and the tactile bristle of the pineapple’s crown are differentiated through controlled highlights and subtle tonal transitions. The glass compote, treated with a keen attention to reflected light, introduces a cool, luminous counterpoint to the warmer reds, ambers, and greens of the fruit, creating a composed interplay between natural abundance and formal presentation. The restrained illumination and dark field behind the arrangement recall the enduring 19th-century still-life tradition in America, where academic realism and decorative refinement often merged in works intended for sophisticated domestic interiors.

Housed in a substantial giltwood frame with molded profiles, the painting reads as a handsome decorative statement—at once traditional and opulent—suited to a dining room, library, or gallery wall where its saturated color and classic subject matter can be appreciated at scale.

Measures: 30.75" w x 35.5" h (overall) See less