Spanish school; c. 1800.

Spanish school; c. 1800.
"Couple of still lifes".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
It has flaws in the pictorial surface.
They have frames c. 1820
Measurements: 63 x 84 cm; 77 x 98 cm (frame).
These two still lifes, belonging to the Spanish School and dated around 1800, are remarkable examples of the pictorial genre that, although it reached its technical and symbolic maturity during the Baroque, continued in force in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries as a form of representation loaded with both aesthetic value and symbolic meaning. The first scene shows a careful arrangement on a wooden table in warm tones, where the lateral light generates marked hallmarks that give the objects an almost sculptural presence. In the center stands a woven wicker basket containing beets with their red stems, conveying a sense of freshness and direct connection to the earth. To the left, a white porcelain bowl with bluish edges holds a cluster of apples, while others are distributed across the surface next to a dark-handled knife, alluding to the imminence of the act of preparing or cutting the fruit. The scene is completed with a ceramic jug decorated with oriental motifs, a sign of the taste for the exotic so characteristic of the eighteenth century, and a small fountain of raspberries that introduce touches of color and accentuate the visual richness of the whole. In the second painting, the protagonist is a large copper jug, imposing and luminous, which dominates the scene with its curved body and warm metallic reflections, in compositional dialogue with a white glazed ceramic jug that stands on a decorated plate. Around it are arranged fruits and vegetables: red tomatoes, green peppers, a small group of greenish pears and vegetable leaves, perhaps chard, which again allude to the richness of the garden. In both compositions, the tenebrist lighting with Caravaggist roots, the detailed treatment of textures and the balanced organization of space reveal a remarkable technical skill and a clear intention to dignify everyday objects through their pictorial representation.