Harnett, William M.

Harnett, William M. (1848-1892), Irish-American painter famed for his meticulous trompe l'oeil still-life paintings. Born in Clonakilty, County Cork, he was taken to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as a child; he was trained as a silver engraver but abandoned his trade in 1875 to paint full time. Harnett’s early paintings sold so well that within three years he was exhibiting his work internationally.

Harnett’s paintings were influenced by the work of 17th-century Dutch still-life masters and American painter Raphaelle Peale. Carefully rendered with sharp, fine details, Harnett’s paintings depict everyday objects juxtaposed against what appear to be real surfaces. Harnett grouped objects to illustrate various themes: guns and pipes to represent the hunt, or books and newspapers on top of a writing table to suggest scholarship. Several of Harnett’s paintings include detailed renderings of worthless currency from the American Civil War, in a revival of the vanitas (vanity) tradition in 17th-century Dutch painting which used skulls, clocks, candles, and similar objects as symbols of mortality.

After a stay in Europe from 1880 to 1886, Harnett settled in New York. Though his success encouraged imitators, it was dismissed by critics of the time as mere trickery. Trompe l'oeil was rediscovered in the 20th century by artists such as Spanish surrealist Salvador Dalí, and the so-called “super-realist” painters of the 1960s.