The Body of Raphaelle Peale: Still Life and Selfhood 18121824 (Ahmanson Murphy Fine Arts Imprint)

About this book

The American painter Raphaelle Peale (1774-1825) left a legacy of vibrantly beautiful still lifes depicting objects such as fruit vegetables and meat. In this lively and literate study the first book-length exploration of the artist Alexander Nemerov presents a radical new reading of these paintings focusing on the uncanny quality of Raphaelles still-life objects. Nemerov argues that the physical presence of these objects is not strictly their own but that of the artists body. This imagery of embodiment Nemerov argues relates deeply to Raphaelles own time. The Body of Raphaelle Peale focuses on not just Raphaelles paintings but also the visual and intellectual culture of early-nineteenth-century Philadelphia to which these works intimately relate. More broadly the book presents a reading of romanticism in the American visual arts. Above all it is an argument about selfhood in Raphaelles era. Raphaelles focusin paintings both playful and morbidwas the pleasures and horrors of being a mere body of being less than a self. Nemerovs primary source of evidence in this study is Raphaelles art itself. After considering its theoretical and historical implications he returns to the images deftly guiding us to a fresh understanding of these remarkable paintings. Nemerovs formal analysis is infused with a sophisticated awareness of interdisciplinary issues and he gracefully balances the formal the theoretical and the historical throughout his narrative. This beautifully illustrated study is sure to stimulate renewed appreciation of an exceptional American artist.