Severin Roesen (c. 1815 in Boppard – c. 1872) was a Prussian-American painter known for his abundant fruit and flower still lifes, and is today recognized as one of the major American painters in that genre from the nineteenth century.

Severin Roesen, one of many German refugees from the 1848 peasant revolutions in Europe, brought to the United States high standards of craftsmanship. His work was modeled after seventeenth- and early-eighteenth-century Dutch painting.

Severin Roesen (ca. 1815 – after 1872) is a painter known for his abundant fruit and flower still lifes and is today recognized as one of the major American still-life painters of the mid-nineteenth century.

Over a dozen varieties of fresh flowers and fruit are featured in this visual spectacle. Nineteenth-century improvements in cultivation and shipping practices enabled the extravagant assortment, which includes a tropical pineapple and a pomegranate that allude to the nation’s future bounty.

Feb 26, 2025 · Severin Roesen (about 1815 to about 1872) was a prolific still-life artist of the mid-nineteenth century whose paintings are considered the most influential in the development of that genre in later nineteenth-century American art.

Dec 27, 2011 · The next time you visit the American Collections in the Museum’s Lower Level, take a look closely at Severin Roesen’s monumental still life of around 1852. It’s full of all of the objects listed above, from the expected to the unexpected.

Artist: Severin Roesen (American (born Prussia), Boppard-am-Rhein 1816–72?) Date: 1855. Culture: American. Medium: Oil on canvas. Dimensions: 36 x 50 in. (91.4 x 127 cm) Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1963. Object Number: 63.99

Nineteenth-century art in Europe and the Americas evolved in relative sync.

Born in Cologne, Germany, Severin Roesen began his career as a porcelain and still-life painter. He emigrated to America in 1848 and shortly thereafter married Wilhelmina Ludwig, by whom he had three children.

Perhaps the most famous American still-life painter, Severin Roesen was born in Boppard-am-Rhein, Germany, between Frankfurt and Cologne. His training remains obscure, but he was active as a porcelain dealer in Cologne and exhibited there in 1847.