JOSEPH PROCTOR

This unusually large and exuberant still life has been attributed to Joseph Proctor, an African-American artist active in New York state. The flower stems are weighed down by healthy blooms, a yellow bird is about to pluck a juicy grape, the watermelon is sliced and ready to eat, and ripe peaches and pineapples have been gathered. This is a picture of material plenty and gustatory excess. Little is known about Proctor, and only a handful of works have been attributed to him. In the 1860 census, Proctor is recorded as an "artist" and his wife Sophia a "housekeeper" in New York City's Lower East Side.