Where Realism Began: A Review of Caravaggio’s ‘Boy with a Basket of Fruit’ at the Morgan Library & Museum Sadie O’Connell, Staff Reporter March 17, 2026
!['Boy with a Basket of Fruit (c. 1593)' is an early masterpiece by Caravaggio that highlights his burgeoning mastery of light and naturalism. It’s a strikingly sensual work from his youth that serves as a precursor to the dramatic chiaroscuro and psychological depth that would later define the Baroque era. [Image Credit: Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi). 'Boy with a
Basket of Fruit, ca. 1595'. Oil on canvas
© Galleria Borghese / ph. Mauro Coen. Photography by Graham S. Haber, 2017; Reprinted by permission of The Morgan Library & Museum]](https://thesciencesurvey.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Caravaggio_Boy_with_Basket_of_Fruit-1153x1200.jpg)