ANNE VALLAYER-COSTER | STILL LIFE OF A MELON, A PEACH, GRAPES AND FLOWERS ON A LEDGE

A rare and successful female artist, Vallayer-Coster was reçu into the Academie Royale in 1770 and exhibited at the Salon for the first time the following year. Though her oeuvre consists mostly of still lifes, she also painted a number of portraits. Given the inclusion of the artist's married name in the signature, this painting dates from later in her career, after her marriage in 1780.