(Rheydt 1803–1889 Düsseldorf)
Still Life with Champagne Glass and Fruit on a Damask Cloth, signed (in ligature), dated J. W. Preyer 1856, oil on canvas, 29.5 x 38.5 cm, framed

Provenance:
Gallery Paffrath, Düsseldorf;
Private Collection, Germany.

Catalogued and Illustrated in:
Siegfried Weiß, Hans Paffrath (Ed.), Johann Wilhelm (1803–1889) and Emilie (1849–1930) Preyer, Düsseldorf 2009, p. 198, no. 130 (colorplate p. 95).

Johann Wilhelm Preyer was a prominent still life painter from the Düsseldorf School of Painting. Originally from Rheydt, Preyer studied at the Düsseldorf Art Academy with fellow painter Peter von Cornelius, and as a master student of Wilhelm von Schadow. Preyer was a part of the German Romantic movement, but travelled to Italy, Holland and Switzerland which allowed him to develop a versatile and accomplished artistic style. He often returned to previous compositions rearranging its various elements.

His focus was to paint his still lifes with fine detail and in a highly naturalistic manner. Preyer often used brown and yellow tones but also included a subtle light source, allowing him to play with shading and lighter tints.

This painting makes no exception. With invisible brushstrokes, Preyer makes the light interact with the transparency of the glass and the sparkling wine, as well as representing the opacity of the grapes. He paints the bubbles in the glass and the insect eating away at the fruit, hinting at a human presence.