Stilleven met vruchten c. 1860 - 1900

This still life with fruit was made by Johannes Arnoldus Boland. The print invites us to consider the enduring motifs of grapes and apples. In classical antiquity, grapes were closely tied to Bacchus, the god of wine, ecstasy, and fertility. We can see, for example, in Roman mosaics where grapes symbolized abundance, celebration, and the cyclical nature of life. The presence of apples carries its own weight. Think of the Garden of Eden, and the apple as the fruit of knowledge, or temptation. Even further back in time, the apple appeared in Greek mythology in the story of the Goddess Eris, whose golden apple was offered to the fairest. This simple arrangement of fruit speaks to a history much more complex, engaging viewers on a subconscious level. These symbols invite us to contemplate themes of mortality and the passage of time, the cyclical nature of life, death, and rebirth.