From Antiquity to modern art · Abundance, geometry, matter and time

Apples, lemons, grapes and figs allow painters to explore abundance, light, geometry and fragility of the visible world.

Fruits already appear in ancient mosaics and murals as signs of abundance and feats of illusion. In modern times, autonomous still life develops baskets, tables and pantries where maturity, damaged skin and insects recall the passage of time. Caravaggio isolates a basket from which each leaf becomes an event; Zurbaran orders lemons, oranges and roses in a silent light; Cézanne uses apples, curtain and compote maker to reconstruct the space; Manet sometimes reduces the genre to a single lemon. From realism to modernity, the fruit remains a simple object capable of renewing all painting. From realism to modernity, the fruit remains a simple object capable of renewing all painting. The "Fruit still lifes" selection puts particularly next to Fruit basket - Caravaggio and Still life with lemons, oranges and roses - Francisco de Zurbaran. His reading favors color.

In a still life, a fruit is never just to eat: its shape builds space, its skin retains light, and its maturity measures time.