Still Life

Artist Xanthus Russell Smith (American, 1839 - 1929)

Date1895

MediumInk on cardboard

DimensionsOverall: 10 × 8in. (25.4 × 20.3cm)

ClassificationsDRAWINGS

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number2004.19

DescriptionA still life in vertical format containing a tall jug covered with woven straw/wicker. A small delicate cylindrical jar or glass and a pitcher or creamer with a plain design and a handle.

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CopyrightNo known copyright restrictions.

Label TextSmith was the scion of a family of Philadelphia artists. He studied in that city at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and then in London at the Royal Academy. This intimate ink drawing of three humble objects, a wine bottle, pitcher and glass, is noteworthy for its charming simplicity and its absence of any narrative overtones or literary associations. Historical American still life drawings are less common than landscape, figure and portrait studies. The documentation that Smith added to this work in the lower left corner makes the sheet that much more interesting. In addition to his initials and the year is a partially illegible word and number that probably reads "March 3." Paul D. Schweizer March 2006