Image source: Wikimedia Commons (Public domain). View source
The Ray
Jean-Siméon Chardin · Rococo & Neoclassicism
- Artist
- Jean-Siméon Chardin (1699–1779)
- Date
- 1728
- Dimensions
- 114.5 x 146 cm
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Location
- Musée du Louvre, Paris, France
The Ray is a kitchen still life dominated by a gutted skate hanging from a hook, its pale belly cut open to reveal red flesh and entrails. Below it, a cat with bristling fur steps over a pile of oysters, while pots, a jug and a knife fill the stone ledge.
A closer look
The hanging fish has a strange, almost human face formed by its nostrils and mouth, which makes the image both repellent and fascinating. Chardin balances the gory centre with calm objects at the right: a copper pot, a stoneware jug, a white cloth, a knife sticking out over the edge. The cat brings tension and movement into the still scene. With this painting, the young Chardin was accepted into the Royal Academy in 1728, praised for a realism that recalled the Dutch and Flemish masters.
