Artwork
Safe Money
Safe Money is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Victor Dubreuil. It dates from 1898 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:lower left: V Dubreuil; lower center, painted over: 1898
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Its representation draws on iconographic conventions of the period to convey layered meanings about wealth and trust.
Victor Dubreuil's 1898 or later oil on canvas painting Safe Money depicts a symbolic interpretation of financial security, aligning with its title's implication of monetary safety. The work's subject engages with themes of economic stability through visual metaphor, situating it within late 19th-century artistic engagements with material culture. Its representation draws on iconographic conventions of the period to convey layered meanings about wealth and trust.
The painting measures 76.84 cm in height by 63.5 cm in width and is part of the National Gallery of Art's collection in Washington, D.C., having entered the museum through a series of documented acquisitions beginning in 1966 via the Fleischman collection and culminating in its acquisition by the National Gallery in 2015.
Technique & Style
Victor Dubreuil's Safe Money is executed in oil paint on a canvas support. The work measures 76.84 cm in height and 63.5 cm in width. As an oil painting from 1898 or later, the piece belongs to the classification of painting and is currently held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
History & Provenance
Victor Dubreuil painted Safe Money in 1898 or later. Lawrence A. and Barbara G. Fleischman of Detroit owned the work and sold it to Kennedy Galleries in New York in 1966. Kennedy Galleries then sold it to the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington on 4 June 1980.
After the Corcoran's dissolution, the National Gallery of Art acquired the work in 2015. The painting measures 76.84 cm by 63.5 cm and remains in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
Overview
Safe Money, executed in oil on canvas in 1898 by Victor Dubreuil, depicts a richly detailed safe brimming with financial symbols. The composition centers on a sturdy metal safe labeled “Dividend’s Safe,” positioned on a tiled floor and opened to reveal stacks of paper currency, gold bars, and ribbon‑bound bundles, alongside a yellow sheet enumerating large profit figures.
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