Still Life with Mustard Pot

Henri Fantin-Latour

National Gallery of Art

We look down at the end of a narrow table at a white plate, pot, knife, and spoon set on the white tablecloth in this horizontal still life painting. The table angles from the top left down into the bottom right of the composition, and the corners of the table itself are cut off by the right and bottom edges of the canvas. At the left, a white ceramic vessel with a lid topped by a teardrop-shaped knob sits on a white saucer. The lid is notched and the handle of a utensil sticks out. To the right, a round white plate rests partly off the edge of the table. On the plate is a golden-yellow spoon positioned with its handle extending to the lower right. A black-handled knife lies across the rims of the plate, its dark blade angled upright and casting a long shadow behind it. The triangular slice of background above the tablecloth is a deep reddish brown. The brushstrokes are visible throughout the painting, and the surface has fine cracks.