Fruit and Flowers

It was part of the still lives series that Fenton did at the Summer of that year, and would be some of his final photographic work, shortly before be leave this activity, in 1862.

Fenton had previously worked in photographing the British Museum collection, and used his perfected skills to capture several carefully arranged still-lives, comprising groups of flowers, fruits, statuettes and other objects.

This picture was shot in a close up, its space is densely filled, and the composition is set at the top of a marble table, decorated with fruits, flowers and some objects, upon a striped cloth.

[5] The National Gallery of Art website states that "The prominent roses and lilies may allude to the sacred, as both are associated with the Virgin Mary, but myriad wine references, such as the grapes, the chalice decorated with grape vines, and especially the impish figurine, whose physical attributes link him to bacchanalian Roman festivals, point decidedly to the profane.

At the same time, the withering rose, drooping leaves, and tired-looking plums remind the viewer that such pleasures are ephemeral.