Attributes of the Painter
Jean Siméon Chardin·1726
Historical Context
The attributes of the painter—palette, brushes, and other tools of the craft—compose this companion to the Attributes of the Architect from 1726 at the Princeton Art Museum. These paired allegorical still lifes from Chardin's earliest period represent the traditional rivalry between architecture and painting as liberal arts. The painter's tools, depicted by a painter, create a self-referential image that connects Chardin to the profession he would soon transform.
Technical Analysis
The painter's palette, brushes, and related implements are rendered with the precision of a craftsman recording his own tools. The varied surfaces—the smooth palette, the bristled brushes, the pigment's texture—each receive differentiated treatment. The paired composition with the Attributes of the Architect creates a dialogue about the tools and nature of artistic practice.
