Artwork
Chrysanthemums
Chrysanthemums is an oil painting. It dates from 1887 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:lower left: Chase
About this work
Technique & Style
Chrysanthemums is an oil painting executed on canvas, a medium consistent with the still-life tradition of late nineteenth-century American practice.
Chrysanthemums is an oil painting executed on canvas, a medium consistent with the still-life tradition of late nineteenth-century American practice. The work measures 68.4 cm in height by 113.7 cm in width, giving it a horizontal format suited to a broad floral arrangement. Classified as a still life, the painting falls within the conventions of the genre, in which the rendering of blooms typically demands careful handling of pigment to convey the layered petals and varied tonalities of the blossoms.
The canvas support and oil medium allow for the kind of detailed surface work associated with floral compositions of this period.
The painting entered the National Gallery of Art as part of the Chester Dale bequest of 1963, and the corpus record notes its earlier appearance at Savoy Art & Auction Galleries in November 1953 under the title Vase of Chrysanthemums. No further information regarding condition or specific stylistic attributes is documented in the available sources.
History & Provenance
The work was first recorded in a Savoy Art & Auction Galleries sale on 14 November 1953 as _Vase of Chrysanthemums_;[1] it entered the collection of Chester Dale, who bequeathed it to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. in 1963. The painting is an oil on canvas executed in the fourth quarter of the 19th century by an unknown American artist.
The painting is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where it was bequeathed in 1963 by Chester Dale. Its earlier ownership includes a sale at Savoy Art & Auction Galleries on 14 November 1953, listed as _Vase of Chrysanthemums_.
Overview
The work titled Chrysanthemums is an oil painting on canvas that presents a generous arrangement of yellow blossoms emerging from a basket. The composition rests upon a darkened tabletop, where the vivid flowers contrast with surrounding deep green foliage, creating a focal point that draws the eye to the luminous petals.
Subject & Meaning
At its core, the painting depicts a single, abundant bunch of chrysanthemums, their golden hues suggesting vitality and warmth. The inclusion of the basket and the surrounding leaves may allude to themes of harvest and domestic abundance, inviting contemplation of nature’s generosity within a modest interior setting.
Context
While the painting’s precise date and artist remain unspecified, its emphasis on still‑life elements and textured surface aligns with traditions in European still‑life painting, where florals often served both decorative and symbolic purposes. The use of impasto reflects a later 19th‑ to early 20th‑century interest in materiality and painterly expression.
Artist & collection
