Artwork
A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit (Personification of 'Summer')
A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit (Personification of 'Summer') is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Bartolomé Esteban Murillo. It dates from 1650 and is held in the collection of the National Galleries Scotland.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
This oil painting functions as an allegory, explicitly personifying the season of Summer.
This oil painting functions as an allegory, explicitly personifying the season of Summer. The central figure is a young man holding a basket filled with fruit, a visual motif that directly symbolizes the harvest and abundance characteristic of the season. By combining the human form with agricultural produce, the work serves as a personification rather than a simple genre scene, embodying the concept of Summer itself.
Technique & Style
The work is executed in oil on canvas, a standard support for Murillo's allegorical paintings of this period. According to the catalogue record, the canvas measures 102 by 81.5 centimetres, while a separate structured data entry gives slightly different dimensions of 99 by 79 centimetres; the discrepancy between the two sources is noted here without resolution. Classified simply as a painting and an allegory, the medium is consistently identified as oil paint across all available records.
No information is provided in the sources regarding the painting's specific handling, brushwork, surface condition, palette, or stylistic qualities, so those aspects cannot be described.
History & Provenance
The painting A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit (Personification of 'Summer') was created by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, with its inception dated to 1650, though some records suggest a range between c. 1640 and 1650. The work is an oil on canvas allegory depicting a personification of summer holding a fruit basket. Its modern ownership history began when it was acquired by the National Galleries of Scotland through a Private Treaty purchase in 1999.
This acquisition was made with significant financial assistance from the Art Fund, securing the piece for the collection at the Scottish National Gallery under the accession number NG 2706. The painting remains a key example of Murillo's allegorical output from the mid-17th century.
Overview
A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit, painted by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo around 1650, is an oil painting that personifies 'Summer'. The work is part of the Scottish National Gallery's collection.
Context
This work is one of several by Murillo that focus on contemporary subjects, offering a glimpse into 17th-century Spanish society. It diverges from his more well-known religious paintings, showcasing the artist's range.
Artist & collection
Artist
Bartolomé Esteban Murillo ( mure-IL-oh, m(y)uu-REE-oh, Spanish:; late December 1617, baptised 1 January 1618 – 3 April 1682) was a Spanish Baroque painter.
