Artwork
Attributes of Music
Attributes of Music is an unspecified painting by the Realist artist François Bonvin. It dates from 1863 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
By arranging the instruments and paper together, Bonvin creates an attribute of music that celebrates the cultural practice of amateur performance at home.
The painting shows a domestic music scene centered on a lute and a flute placed beside printed sheet music and assorted musical accessories. These objects function as visual symbols of music, emphasizing the activity’s presence in 19th‑century bourgeois interiors. By arranging the instruments and paper together, Bonvin creates an attribute of music that celebrates the cultural practice of amateur performance at home.
The work thus represents music not through narrative or allegory but through the careful rendering of its material components, highlighting the aesthetic and social value of musical recreation in the era.
History & Provenance
The painting Attributes of Music by François Bonvin (French, 1817–1887) was created in 1863, as indicated by the artist’s date and the work’s inception year on record. The provenance traces the painting to the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it entered the collection as accession number 1980.233, confirming its institutional custody. Bonvin’s composition depicts a still-life arrangement of musical instruments and printed sheet music, aligning with the allegorical tradition of the attributes genre, which personifies abstract concepts through symbolic objects.
The work’s creation history situates it within Bonvin’s mature period, characterized by his focus on genre scenes and still lifes informed by Dutch and French seventeenth-century precedents.
François Bonvin's 1863 painting Attributes of Music is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art in Cleveland, Ohio. The work is cataloged under the accession number 1980.233. While the artwork was created in France, its current institutional home is the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it remains part of the permanent holdings.
The painting, measuring approximately 62.6 cm in height and 116 cm in width, depicts various musical instruments including a lute and flute alongside printed sheet music. No specific exhibition history dates or loan records are provided in the available documentation.
Overview
"Attributes of Music" is a painting depicting a still life of musical instruments and sheet music. A lute and flute are partially obscured by crumpled scores, suggesting a scene of disuse or temporary neglect. The composition, dated 1863, evokes a quiet contemplation of absence rather than active performance, presenting a moment frozen in time after the music has ceased.
Technique & Style
The artist employs a dark background to emphasize the foreground elements, creating a dramatic contrast. The interplay of light and shadow, characteristic of chiaroscuro, highlights the textures of the lute's dark wood, the crumpled paper, and the delicate rose. This technique enhances the painting's mood, lending a somber and introspective quality to the depiction of the instruments and their setting.
Artist & collection
