Peale hailed from a large family of Philadelphia artists highly regarded as skilled portraitists. Raphaelle, however, developed an affinity for still-life painting. Despite the initial disapproval of his father, the renowned painter Charles Willson Peale, he persevered and helped popularize the still-life genre in the United States.

Peaches and Grapes in a Chinese Export Basket is one of Raphaelle’s earliest signed and dated paintings, and it may relate to the Peale family’s experimental farm outside of Philadelphia. The farm featured heated greenhouses, which provided Raphaelle with the luxury of painting fruits and flowers even when they were out of season. These peaches sit in an ornate blue and white porcelain basket, a costly item imported from China that signaled cultural refinement and the prosperity brought about by international trade.

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023).