1724
oil
canvas
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
Still Life with Monkey, Fruits, and Flowers is a 1724 oil by Jean-Baptiste Oudry, a Baroque work, held at Art Institute of Chicago.
This painting shows a monkey grabbing grapes from a bowl of fruit and flowers. The monkey is a interesting addition to the still life. It was a popular symbol in this time period, known for being mischievous. The artist also painted the fruits and flowers in a lush way, making them look overripe. You can see similar use of color and lighting in the works of other artists who used the technique of glazing.
Jean-Baptiste Oudry received numerous commissions from Louis XV of France, who admired his skill as a painter of animals and still lifes. The artist frequently combined his two specialties, as in this work, in which a monkey, an animal celebrated in this period for its mischievous and lustful character, snatches a few grapes. The French Rococo taste for the sensual is manifest in the lush, overripe quality of the fruits and flowers, reminiscent of 17th-century Flemish works that Oudry is known to have studied. Paintings such as this typically adorned dining rooms as part of an overall…
Louis Aubert, Lyon (died c. 1886); his sale, Hôtel des Ventes, Lyons, April 12–13, 1886, lot 43, as Singe dérobant des fruits. Paris art market, c. 1970 [according to Opperman 1977 and telephone conversation of Opperman with Martha Wolff, July 12, 2005]. Heim Gallery, London by 1977; sold to the Art Institute, 1977.
Paris, Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, J.–B. Oudry, 1686–1755, 1982–83, cat. 32 (cat. 17 in English catalogue); traveled to Kimbell Art Museum, Forth Worth, Texas, and Kansas City, Missouri.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Jean-Baptiste Oudry was a French Rococo painter, engraver, and tapestry designer. He is particularly well known for his naturalistic pictures of animals and his hunt pieces depicting game. His son, Jacques-Charles Oudry, was also a painter.
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