Antoine-ferdinand Attendu (1845-1917), Still Life With Demijohn

In 1874, Antoine-Ferdinand Attendu (1845-1917) participated in the highly acclaimed first exhibition of Impressionist painters at Nadar's gallery, where he presented no fewer than six canvas.
Little is known about this artist's training or his connections to the Impressionist movement, from which he seems rather distant. The rapprochement he made in 1874 should be understood as a distancing from official academicism, which led him to align himself with this group of highly innovative dissidents.
Ferdinand Attendu was above all a naturalist, with a precision of line that connects him to the spirit found in 17th-century Dutch still lifes, which clearly influenced him.
Primarily a still-life painter, he also produced a few landscapes and exhibited regularly at the Salon from 1870 to 1905.
Small still lifes by Ferdinand Attendu are held in the collections of the Château de Lunéville Museum, the Valence Museum of Art and Archaeology, and the Rennes Museum.

This small, highly prized work depicts three everyday objects: a demijohn, a large, thick glass bottle partially lined with a woven rush casing and fitted with two handles to protect it from impacts and facilitate transport; a small stoneware jug; and a metal funnel.
The contrasting colors and materials of the three objects create a striking effect, skillfully catching the light coming from the left of the painting.
The rustic nature of the objects is enhanced by subtle lighting which gives the whole a refinement reminiscent of the art of the great 18th-century still-life painter, Jean-Siméon Chardin (1699-1779).