JACOPO DA EMPOLI
(b. 1551, Firenze, d. 1640, Firenze)

Kitchen Still-Life

1620s
Oil on canvas
Private collection

Between 1621 and 1625 Jacopo painted still-lifes, of which about ten are known. In all of these works the abundant still-life objects are arranged parallel to the picture plane in clear and lucid compositions. These paintings have always surprised critics because of their divergence from the dominant trends of contemporary Florentine painting. They may have been painted purely for Empoli's own amusement, yet they were widely influential.