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The Supper Table / John Koch
About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1979/2.114
- Title
- The Supper Table
- Artist
- John Koch
- Artist Nationality
- American
- Artist Life Dates
- 1909-1978
- Medium and Support
- oil on canvas
- Object Creation Date
- circa 1940
- Object Creation Place
- North and Central America (continent)
- United States (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- North and Central America (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- United States (nation)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Mrs. Dora Koch
- Style/Group/Movement
- Realist
- Inscription
- Inscribed l.r.: Koch
- Dimensions
- 66.2 cm x 76.7 cm (26 1/16 in. x 30 3/16 in.)
- Century
- 20th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Painting
- Physical Description
- This painting shows a woman and a boy sitting at a dining table that is set for a meal. The woman, on the right side of the composition, is shown in a profile view and is using a ladle to pour soup into a bowl. The boy, seated in a ladder back chair, is holding a spoon with his hands resting on the table. He is gazing at the soup bowl. Both figures have somber, quiet facial expressions. A table lamp, seen only partially on the far left of the painting, is the single source of light. So, the figures and the table top are brightly lit, but the rest of the setting is very dark. Items on the table such as the plate with melon, the milk bottle, the salt and pepper shakers and the tablecloth, are shown in realistic detail, much like a still- life painting.
- Subject Matter
- John Koch is well known for his scenes of richly furnished New York city homes depicted in a style of realism often compared to the master painter, Vermeer. In this painting, however, the subject matter is unknown. We see a simple meal of soup, bread and fruit shared quietly by a woman and a boy. Koch uses the light from the lamp to highlight their faces, but also to create a warm glow that encompasses this peaceful scene. The table items are painted in a manner reminiscent of a Dutch still-life painting, expecially the folds of the tablecloth and the reflection on the milk bottle.
- Primary Keywords
- bottle
- boys
- bread
- chairs
- figures
- food
- fruit
- ladle
- lamp
- lamps (lighting devices)
- meals
- seated
- soup
- table
- women
- Secondary Keywords
- descriptors
- events
- furnishings
- furnishings by form or function
- furniture
- furniture by form or function
- lighting devices
- lighting devices by form
- materials
- materials by function
- materials by origin
- modern and contemporary art
- objects
- objects we use
- people
- people (agents)
- people and culture
- people and occupations
- people by gender
- plant material
- plants
- seating furniture
- single seating furniture
- the natural world
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 1369 x 985
- File Size
- 122 KB
- Record
- 1979/2.114
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1979-sl-2.114/1979_2.114.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
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Cite this Item
View the Help Guide for more information.
- Full citation
-
"The Supper Table; John Koch." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1979-sl-2.114/1979_2.114.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 21, 2024.
