Moïse Jacobber (1785-1863)
1849
Oil on Wood
H. 102.5 cm;L. 89 cm
Fontainebleau, Musée National du Château, RF 558
Salon des Tapisseries (Tapestry Salon).
Moïse Jacobber was a florist painter who trained in the workshop of Gérard Van Spaendonck and was active between 1822 and 1848, both as an easel painter and as a ‘first-class painter of flowers and fruit’ at the Sèvres factory. Jacobber was then commissioned to copy compositions by Van Spaendonck, an example of which is still preserved in the Sèvres Factory (MNC 7250).
The painting presented here is a composition by the artist depicting a basket richly laden with flowers and fruit on a stone entablature. White and black grapes, wild strawberries, cabbage roses, and nasturtiums are densely arranged in a basket. The oval format that is quite rare for floral still life paintings further accentuates the abundance of this composition.
The debt Jacobber owes to Van Spaendonck is clearly visible in this painting: the drawing’s realism, the brilliance of the colours, the illusionary nature of detail in the dewdrops. Jacobber also worked for Louis-Philippe and his family. The Sèvres factory registers indicate that on 22nd April 1844 ‘by order of Her Majesty the Queen’, a cup and a serving tray were delivered to her at the Tuileries. In 1842 he opened a floral painting training workshop and seemed to be active in Sèvres until 1848.
Exhibitions
2018-2019, Château de Fontainebleau, Louis-Philippe à Fontainebleau. The King and History.
Continuing to Explore
