Artwork
The Bourgeois' Kitchen
The Bourgeois' Kitchen is an unspecified painting by the Biedermeier artist Octave Tassaert. It dates from 1854 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Octave Tassaell’s 1854 canvas entitled The Bourgeois’ Kitchen is part of the collection at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
The composition emphasizes spatial depth and the tactile rendering of textures such as wood, linen, and metal, characteristic of Tassaert's academic technique.
The painting is executed in oil on canvas, measuring 46.3 cm by 38.1 cm, and was created in France in 1854. It depicts a domestic interior with meticulous attention to domestic furnishings and lighting, reflecting realist tendencies in mid-19th century European genre painting. The composition emphasizes spatial depth and the tactile rendering of textures such as wood, linen, and metal, characteristic of Tassaert's academic technique.
The work is housed in the Cleveland Museum of Art, which documents its acquisition and preservation status in its collection records.
History & Provenance
The Bourgeois' Kitchen was created by Octave Tassaert in 1854 in France. The painting is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is catalogued under the accession number 1980.286. The sources do not provide further details about a commission, intermediate owners, or the circumstances of its acquisition by the museum.
Overview
Octave Tassaell’s 1854 canvas entitled The Bourgeois’ Kitchen is part of the collection at the Cleveland Museum of Art. The painting portrays a domestic interior illuminated by a single, subdued light source, drawing attention to a solitary woman engaged in food preparation amid modest furnishings.
Subject & Meaning
At the centre of the composition a woman in a plain white dress leans over a wooden table, arranging raw cuts of meat, a fish, and a heap of carrots and greens. Her focused gaze and steady hands suggest the routine labor of a middle‑class household, emphasizing the dignity of everyday work.
Context
The painting belongs to a broader French tradition of genre scenes that documented bourgeois life with a realistic yet empathetic eye. In the 1850s, artists like Tassaell responded to social changes by focusing on domestic interiors, offering viewers a glimpse into the private sphere of the emerging middle class.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Nicolas François Octave Tassaert (Paris, 26 July 1800 – Paris, 24 April 1874) was a French painter of portraits and genre, religious, historical and allegorical paintings, as well as a lithographer and engraver.
