_Roses de Nice_ on a Table

Henri Fantin-Latour

National Gallery of Art

Seven roses in full bloom are clustered in a wide bouquet set against a dark brown background in this horizontal still life painting. The blossom to our left is peach, and a bud dips down in front of that flower. Behind it and to our right is a lavender pink rose, and then wine red, blush pink, and white. Two butter-yellow roses are along the top of the bouquet, and one of those faces away from us to the right. Spring-green leaves are interspersed throughout, and a single maroon-red petal sits lies on the table in the lower left corner of the composition. The scene is painted with visible brushstrokes, especially evident in the dark background. The artist signed and dated the painting with red paint in the top right corner, “Fantin. 82.”