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The document discusses the Baroque-era painting "Still Life with Terms and a Bust of Ceres" by Frans Snyder from 1630. The elaborate oil painting depicts a lush wreath of fruits and vegetables surrounding a bust of Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture. Two satyr figures hold up the wreath, implying that only those who believe in God will find righteousness, while sinners are condemned to an indulgent but unpleasant life. The piece was created during the Counter Reformation to promote Catholic teachings through artistic propaganda to an illiterate population.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)

218 views5 pages

Museum Paper

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Ameer Dunn

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Upon my visit to the PMEA, the piece Still Life with Terms and a Bust of Ceres

captivated me. Still Life with Terms and a Bust of Ceres is an elaborate Early Baroque oil

painting by the Belgian still life and animal master, Frans Snyder. Created in 1630, the lush

creation details a highly decorative wreath of fruit, vegetables, and grain that frames a bust of

Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture, grain crops, fertility and motherly relationships.

When glancing at the painting, the most dominant feature is the wreathe of various vegetation

such as fruits, grains and vegetables. The wreathe consists of pears, plums, dates, corn, gourds,

berries, melons, peaches and more. Some fruits are bursting open ever so slightly. Other fruits
are so ripe, they appear engorged. Several animals are scavenging in the smorgasboard. Two

small birds perch and peck form the outcropping branches while another two interact over a

piece of fruit. Three statues stand in the background of the painting. The leftmost figure is a male

with satyr-like features in impeccable shape. His stance has his left arm on top of his head, right

behind his horns. A dark crimson ribbon hangs in a knot from his bicep, showing that he and the

parallel figure hold the wreathe in place. A plumed bird roosts on his shoulder as he carries a

smug grin. Vines drape from his waist. A Satyress stands parallel to the male with a similar pose:

a ribbon hanging from the bicep, smug grin, arm on top of head with vines draping from her

waist. A small rodent relishes in the sight of so much food in the bottom left corner of the

wreathe. A monkey grips a branch from below the satyress, stalking the wreathe in a predatory

stance. These objects all stand together in a darkly lit brown room harmoniously brought together

by a lovely bust of the fertility goddess Ceres.

The piece was developed in the early Baroque era of Europe, heavily influenced by the

Counter Reformation, the period of Catholic resurgence initiated in response to the Protestant

Reformation. The Reformation were sparked by Martin Luthers 95 Theses, which criticised the

Catholic Churchs commitment to the people and brought Europes most dominant institution,

The Catholic Church into question. At this point in European History, ..the church owned over

1/3 of all the land in Europe, which helped make it the most powerful economic and political

force on the continent, and the Pope claimed authority over all the kings of Europe as the

successor to the Roman emperor. (Luther and the Protestant Reformation: Crash Course #218)

As the Churchs empire grew, the quality of spirituality dwindled. Commoners could spend half a

years earnings on indulges, slips of paper that pardoned the sinner from their transgressions, no

matter how severe. The mantra sola fide (The just shall live through faith) lost its meaning.
What started as a doctrinal dispute turned into a social revolt, and in 1525 German peasants

took up Luther's ideas to give voice to long standing grievances against landlords and

clergymen. (Luther and the Protestant Reformation: Crash Course #218) The biggest European

revolt in History until the French revolution would take place, 100,000 peasant deaths estimated

to have taken place, fighting against serfdom.

To affirm their control over the people, the Church could not submit propaganda to the priests

and monks, who could read Latin, and thus could read the Bible. The Church had to reach the

peasant majority through means that did not demand reading, turning to the medium of artwork

to maintain their teachings to an illiterate people, birthing the Baroque Era. The Catholic Church

used a systematic art campaign to teach morals and the importance of biblical events. Examples

include and are not limited to, The Adoration of the Magi and The Adoration of the Golden Calf.

Stylistically speaking, Baroque painting is characterized by great drama, rich, deep colour, and

intense light and dark shadows, but the classicism of French Baroque painters like Poussin and

Dutch genre painters such as Vermeer are also covered by the term (Baroque Painting).

Compared to Renaissance paintings, which take place before an event occurs, Baroque immerses

the viewer in the most dramatic point of the event, persuading the viewer to indulge in pathos.

I think that Frans Snyders intent with this piece was similar to another leading Baroque artist of

the time, Nicolas Poussin. Poussin would develop the paintings to have wicked interpretations of

unrighteousness in the Christian faith. It seems to me that Snyder chose to create a work

displaying the pagan Roman goddess of fertility and crops, due to extensive knowledge of

animal and fruit still life. The Satyrs have devilish appearances, and are accented by smoky

shadows, implying evil and mystery and theyre holding the wreath of fruit up. Because of the
wild and rowdy nature of the Satyr, I think that Snyder is trying to say only the sinners life is a

terrible one, and theyll be condemned to partake in a luscious feast of swollen and overly ripe

fruits, and feast with the beasts, playing off of the mantra, The just shall live through faith. If

you are a devilish and indulgent person, like a satyr, the only fruit that will bear for you is

swollen, and sickeningly sweet, boding unpleasant experiences to come. You have to believe in

the righteousness of the word of god, and the even the great Roman Gods are worthy of the

praise that should be unto God, a fitting piece of propaganda for the Catholic Church.

Bibliography

Snyder, Frans. Still Life with Terms and a Bust of Ceres . Philadelphia Museum of Art,