Jan Roos, 'Still Life of Fruit and Vegetables with Two Monkeys', about 1620
About the work
Overview
A monkey pauses while picking peaches from a pile of fruit to snarl viciously at another monkey gazing longingly at the hoard. The setting is ambiguous: the rich display of corn, grapes, apples, pears, quinces and peaches is positioned on a stone ledge and overflows onto a smooth floor, where two suggestively shaped gourds are prominently positioned. Monkeys were sometimes kept as exotic pets, so this scene might depict the discovery of fruit in store ahead of a stately banquet.
The composition is derived from the work of the Flemish hunt, animal and still-life painter Frans Snijders, to whom this picture was once attributed, but the lesser quality of its execution points to the work of Snijders' pupil Jan Roos. It was probably painted in Genoa where, having found high demand for his work, Roos settled permanently from 1616.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- Still Life of Fruit and Vegetables with Two Monkeys
- Artist
- Jan Roos
- Artist dates
- 1591 - 1638
- Date made
- about 1620
- Medium and support
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 102.9 × 135.5 cm
- Acquisition credit
- Presented by Miss Emily Jane Wood at the wish of her uncle, Decimus Burton, 1888
- Inventory number
- NG1252
- Location
- Not on display
- Collection
- Main Collection
Provenance
Additional information
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Gregory Martin, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: The Flemish School: circa 1600–circa 1900’, London 1986; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.
Bibliography
-
1986Martin, Gregory, National Gallery Catalogues: The Flemish School, circa 1600 - circa 1900, London 1986
-
2001
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
About this record
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.