Linard Jacques

 

 Still Life: The Five Senses with Flowers, 1639

Jacques Linard
French, 1600-1645
Oil on canvas
21-1/2 x 26-3/4 in. (54.6 x 68 cm)
Norton Simon Art Foundation

Pasadena,CA

Little is known about Jacques Linard’s early training, though we do know that he lived in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district where numerous still-life painters, including Louise Moillon, worked. His few known paintings consist solely of still lifes of flowers and fruit animated by butterflies and birds. They are
distinguished for the quality of their surface and execution, their refined chromatic harmony and the sobriety of their settings.

The allegory of the five senses was perfectly suited to the symbolic intent of many still lifes in the seventeenth century. In these emblematic arrangements, each of the five senses is symbolized by one or several objects: smell by the bouquet of flowers; taste by the pomegranate, lemon and cup of wine;
hearing by the ivory flageolet, or flute; sight by the mirror; and touch by the playing cards, dice and shaker.