Still Life with Mustard Pot

The painting was completed in 1860, as recorded in its creation date. It was owned by Léonce Bénédite and appeared in the 1906 memorial exhibition of Fantin-Latour's work, the Exposition des oeuvres de Fantin-Latour held at the École nationale des beaux-arts in Paris, where it was catalogued as no. 64. It was subsequently acquired by Paul Mellon, who bequeathed it to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 1999, with a life interest granted to his wife, Rachel Lambert Mellon. The work remains in the museum's collection today.

Still Life with Mustard Pot, painted by Henri Fantin‑Latour in 1860, exemplifies the mature French still‑life tradition. After passing through the collection of Léonce Bénédite, who exhibited it at the 1906 École nationale des Beaux‑arts show, the work entered the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., via the 1999 bequest of Paul Mellon. Its presence in a leading public museum and repeated scholarly attention have contributed to a sustained reputation as a representative example of 19th‑century French decorative painting, influencing later interpretations of the genre.

Henri Fantin-Latour's Still Life with Mustard Pot, painted in 1860, is an oil on canvas work that exemplifies the Realist approach to art. This painting showcases the artist's dedication to depicting common subjects with meticulous detail. Fantin-Latour, a French painter, was recognized for his still lifes and his group portraits of contemporary Parisian cultural figures, and this piece reflects his early engagement with the precise observation characteristic of the period.

Born in 1836, Henri Fantin-Latour was a French artist who became known for his still life compositions and his portraits of prominent artists and writers in Paris. This 1860 work aligns with the burgeoning Realist movement, which championed the depiction of unidealized subjects from daily life. While later associated with Impressionism through his connections, this early still life firmly establishes his roots in the precise observational methods of Realism.