Why is it called still life?

Why it is called still life has to do with the history of the art genre. Still life painting became a distinct genre thanks to the work of late 16th- and 17th-century Dutch artists. They called their paintings stilleven, which translates to motionless or silent life in English. This term relates to the fact that Dutch still life artists painted motionless objects such as flowers and fruit. As the genre spread beyond the Netherlands, English-speaking artists referred to it as still life. Shop a selection of still life paintings on 1stDibs.