Artwork
Still Life with Limes Oranges Haw Berries and Watermelon
Still Life with Limes Oranges Haw Berries and Watermelon is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Luis Egidio Meléndez. It dates from 1760 and is held in the collection of the Museo del Prado.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The work presents a still life arrangement featuring limes, oranges, haw berries, and a watermelon, as indicated by its title.
The work presents a still life arrangement featuring limes, oranges, haw berries, and a watermelon, as indicated by its title. Records expand the visual inventory to include lemons, cherries, and a pumpkin, all resting upon a table. While the painting is classified within the still life genre, the available sources do not elaborate on specific iconographic meanings, symbolic interpretations, or the deeper representational significance of these fruits beyond their depiction as natural objects.
The composition focuses on the tangible presence of these items, arranged to showcase their forms and textures without an explicitly stated allegorical narrative in the available documentation.
Technique & Style
The painting is executed in oil paint on canvas and dates to 1760. Its dimensions measure 47 by 33 centimetres, reflecting the scale typical of mid-18th-century Spanish still-life works. Meléndez arranges limes, oranges, hawthorn berries, and a slice of watermelon on a tabletop, creating a balanced composition that emphasizes naturalistic detail and subtle chiaroscuro.
The formal handling showcases a restrained palette with vivid accents of citrus and deep shadows that model the fruit's texture. The work belongs to the Museo del Prado and was originally part of the Spanish royal collection at the Royal Palace of Aranjuez.
History & Provenance
Created by Luis Egidio Meléndez in 1760, this oil on canvas still life measures 47 cm in height and 33 cm in width. It was part of the Spanish royal collection and is currently held in the collection of the Museo del Prado, with records noting its location at the Royal Palace of Aranjuez. Its inventory number is P00780.
It has been exhibited at the Museo del Prado in the exhibition "Luis Egidio Meléndez: Bodegones," held from 27 November 2005 to 26 March 2006.
Overview
Luis Egidio Meléndez, an eighteenth-century Spanish painter, completed Still Life with Limes, Oranges, Haw Berries and Watermelon in 1760. Executed in oil paint, this work exemplifies his mastery of the still-life genre. Although his talent was not fully appreciated during his lifetime, he is now recognized as one of Spain's most accomplished artists in this field. The painting meticulously renders a collection of fruits and household items.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Luis Egidio Meléndez (1716–1780) was a Spanish painter. Though he received little acclaim during his lifetime and died in poverty, Meléndez is recognized as one of the greatest Spanish still-life painters of the 18th…
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