The Beauty of Ordinary Things: A Unique Artistic Vision
The understated brilliance of Jean Siméon Chardin
Some artists depict the most explosive or awe-inspiring subjects in their art. They are drawn to the most impressive, gruesome or magnificent sides of life.
The 18th century painter Jean Siméon Chardin took the opposite approach.
Working in an era when art was at its most theatrical — known as the Rococo period — Chardin pursued a style of painting that treasured the subtle beauty of the world around him. In an age of lavish excess, he was an artist who placed extraordinary emphasis on the most commonplace things.
Chardin drew influence from 17th century Dutch art, which had already mastered still life painting and its numerous possibilities, filling bowls of fruit and bouquets of flowers with hidden references to hope, despair, patriotism and death.
Chardin’s paintings do something else. They take us into the quietude of empty rooms and private recreations. Overt symbolism is dropped in favour of astute enchantment. Through depictions of loaves of bread, cutlery, saltcellars and coffee pots, his work…
