# Still Life with Fan and Roses

**Thomas Hovenden** (born Dunmanway, Ireland 1840-died Plymouth Meeting, PA 1895)  
1874  
oil on canvas  
9 3/8 x 11 1/8 in. (23.9 x 28.2 cm.)

Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, 1979.149. [The museum's record](https://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artwork/?id=10817).

## About this work

Thomas Hovenden painted a few still lifes in addition to his better-known genre scenes. Here, a seemingly casual arrangement of objects masks the care that Hovenden took to create a balanced composition. The arc of blooms in the lower right echoes the details of the graceful Japanese fan that anchors the painting. Clear light, luminous shadows, and a mix of humble and exotic objects evoke the golden age of Dutch still-life painting, a tradition Hovenden likely knew from his Paris teachers and his hours spent in museums.

_Text from the Smithsonian American Art Museum._

Thomas Hovenden painted this in 1874, aged 34. It is now at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, DC.

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Thomas Hovenden](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/thomas-hovenden)

born Dunmanway, Ireland 1840-died Plymouth Meeting, PA 1895

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- The artist was 34
- Real size: about 9½ × 11 in (24 × 28 cm). The 8 × 10 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 19th century
- Subjects: Fans, Roses, Clothing and dress, Containers, Tables, Dress accessories, Periodicals, Dish
- Colour: black
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1956.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1956/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/still-life-with-fan-and-roses-si-saam-1979-149).