Still Life with Flowers and Fruit

Like many painters of flowers, Albert Herter chose to live surrounded by them. And, thanks to wealth amassed by his father’s decorating firm, he was able to do so in grand style at an estate in East Hampton. Touchstone magazine included his garden in ‘Picturesque Entrances to American Houses,’ and House Beautiful published a photograph of his dining room with vases of flowers similar to these gladiolas. Here, his careful depiction of stems inside glass recalls French flower paintings he would have seen when he lived in Paris. Primarily a muralist, Herter painted this bouquet for his own pleasure, and the painting remained in his family until it was donated to the museum in 1981.